SAFER PATH: Security architecture using fragmented execution and replication for protection against trojaned hardware

Ensuring electronic components are free from Hardware Trojans is a very difficult task. Research suggests that even the best pre- and post-deployment detection mechanisms will not discover all malicious inclusions, nor prevent them from being activated. For economic reasons electronic components are used regardless of the possible presence of such Trojans. We developed the SAFER PATH architecture, which uses instruction and data fragmentation, program replication, and voting to create a computational system that is able to operate safely in the presence of active Hardware Trojans. We protect the integrity of the computation, the confidentiality of data being processed and ensure system availability. By combining a small Trusted Computing Base with Commercial-Off-The-Shelf processing elements, we are able to protect computation from the effects of arbitrary Hardware Trojans.