The method to make personalization finalized in a Java smart card.
Posted by Sonny Yu on Aug 7th 2024
Finalizing the personalization of a Java smart card to ensure that no one, including yourself, can modify the data involves a series of steps and security mechanisms. This process locks down the card's data and configurations to maintain the security and integrity of the card. Here are the steps and methods typically used to achieve this:
Steps to Finalize Personalization:
- Load and Personalize Applications:
- Load Applets: Load the required applets and applications onto the Java smart card.
- Personalize Data: Personalize the card with specific user data such as account numbers, cryptographic keys, and personal identification information.
- Configure Security Settings:
- Set up security settings such as PINs, access controls, and cryptographic keys.
- Ensure all authentication mechanisms are in place and functioning correctly.
- Verify and Test:
- Verify that all data and applications are correctly loaded and personalized.
- Conduct thorough testing to ensure the card operates as expected with the personalized data.
Methods to Finalize Personalization:
- Set Immutable Flags:
- Use the card’s operating system features to set immutable flags on the personalized data. These flags prevent any further modifications after personalization.
- Fuse Security Bits:
- Fusing involves setting specific bits in the card’s memory to lock down configurations and data. Once these bits are fused, they cannot be changed, making the data permanent.
- Use One-Time Programmable (OTP) Memory:
- Write critical data and configurations to OTP memory areas. Once written, this data cannot be altered, ensuring its permanence.
- Lock the Card Manager:
- Utilize the GlobalPlatform or similar Card Manager’s security features to lock the card manager after personalization. This prevents any further loading or deletion of applets.
- Finalize Cryptographic Keys:
- Finalize and lock down the cryptographic keys used for secure communication and authentication, ensuring they cannot be changed or extracted.
- Set Application Life Cycle States:
- Change the life cycle states of the applications and the card itself to indicate the final personalized state. For example, in GlobalPlatform, set the card and applications to the "SECURED" state.
Example of Finalization Using GlobalPlatform:
Using GlobalPlatform commands, you can finalize the card personalization by setting the Card Manager and applet states to secured:
// Lock the Card Manager by setting its state to "SECURED" GP COMMAND: SET-STATE -state SECURED // Lock individual applets by changing their life cycle state to "SECURED" GP COMMAND: SET-STATE -applet <AppletAID> -state SECURED
Summary
To finalize the personalization of a Java smart card and ensure that no one, including yourself, can modify the data, you should:
- Set immutable flags.
- Fuse security bits.
- Use OTP memory for critical data.
- Lock the Card Manager.
- Finalize cryptographic keys.
- Set application life cycle states to "SECURED".
These steps effectively lock down the card’s personalized data and configurations, ensuring that the data remains secure and unalterable.