Side-channel and fault attacks

Module overview

This module focuses on physical attacks, mounted on devices processing secret information. We present side-channel attacks, which exploit information leaked by the devices during computations (e.g. power consumptions and electromagnetic radiations), and fault attacks, which are techniques that stress the device and lead it to improper functioning. Both the attacks aim to gain sensible data or bypass countermeasures.

Objective of this module

The main objective of this module is to provide the audience with an introduction to the physical attacks that can be mounted on devices in which some cryptographic secrets are handled, with a particular attention to the side-channel and faults attacks. During the module, both these two classes of attacks are presented along with their application on some well known cryptographic algorithms. At the end of the training the audience will better understand what are the mathematical and physical properties that are exploited in these attacks. Furthermore the audience will learn what are the main countermeasures to protect an implementation against such attacks.

You will cover:

This module covers the following topics:

• Side-channel attacks and faults attacks
• How these attacks are implemented on AES, RSA, ECC and Keccak algorithms
• How to mitigate them by implementing countermeasures
• Real life examples of attacks

This module is
intended for:

This module targets professionals in the field of silicon design, firmware or software developers, cryptographers and security experts who need to broaden their knowledge about security of devices in terms of physical attacks, mostly side-channels and faults attacks. Moreover, we suggest this module also to managers and project managers that need to acquire knowledge on the topic for their projects. We also highly recommend attending the module “Introduction to security and cryptography”, to get the basic notions required for this module.