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Timing attacks against user logon and network I/O

  • US 7,644,439 B2
  • Filed: 09/08/2004
  • Issued: 01/05/2010
  • Est. Priority Date: 05/03/1999
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A method for protecting against timing attacks a trusted path mechanism, comprising:

  • modifying, by a computer system, a trusted path mechanism implementation to be a multithreaded process comprising a first thread to prevent any timing Trojan horses from running, the first thread running in a loop at a high priority relative to the timing Trojan horse;

    wherein modifying the trusted oath mechanism implementation to be a multithreaded process comprises modifying a control thread, the control thread operable to provide a communication oath between an input device and an operating system, to include the first thread configured to execute the high priority relative to the timing Trojan horse in response to an absence of an input from the input device and a second thread configured to execute in response to receipt of an input from the input device, the first thread and the second thread being operable to run in a substantially consecutive manner, the first thread being operable to run in a loop at the high priority relative to the timing Trojan horse to prevent the timing Trojan horses from running;

    receiving, by the control thread, a first input from the input device, the first input representing a first character of a keycode;

    creating, by the control thread, the first thread in response to receiving the first input;

    initiating, by the control thread, execution of the second thread to process the first input received from the input device;

    detecting completion of processing of the first input from the input device by the second thread; and

    in response to completion of the processing of the first input from the input device, discontinuing, by the control thread, execution of the second thread and initiating execution of the first thread in a loop at the high priority relative to the timing Trojan horse to prevent the timing Trojan horses from running.

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