Towards a comprehensive solution for secure cryptographic protocol execution based on runtime verification

Abstract

Analytical security of cryptographic protocols does not immediately translate to operational security due to incorrect implementation and attacks targeting the execution environment. Code verification and hardwarebased trusted execution solutions exist, however these leave it up to the implementer to assemble the complete solution, and imposing a complete re-think of the hardware platforms and software development process. We rather aim for a comprehensive solution for secure cryptographic protocol execution, based on runtime verification and stock hardware security modules that can be deployed on existing platforms and protocol implementations. A study using a popular web browser shows promising results with respect to practicality.