Microchip Launches TA101: Automotive Network Security

Microchip Technology Inc. has recently unveiled its cutting-edge Trust Anchor security IC, the TA101, engineered to meet the intricate security demands of automotive and embedded systems. The TA101 boasts support for substantial key sizes and implements the Edwards Curve ed25519 algorithm standard, delivering a level of security strength that surpasses existing benchmarks. Notably, it accommodates both larger and smaller key sizes, ensuring adaptability to evolving security requirements.

Positioned as the latest addition to Microchip's comprehensive security IC product lineup, the TA101 is meticulously crafted for applications in automotive security, data centers, and industrial settings. Operating in synergy with MCUs or MPUs, it proficiently manages encryption functions, encompassing public key infrastructure, certificate management, and secure key storage. Among its diverse features are seamless patch updates, information verification, TLS, secure boot, HDCP, firmware updates, secure upgrades, ownership transfer, key management, and WPC Qi® 1.3 validation.

Nuri Dagdeviren, Vice President of Microchip's Security Compute Business Unit, emphasized, "For OEMs, adherence to standards is paramount, but leadership in the realm of security is equally crucial. The TA101 introduces key strength diversity, catering to both current and future applications with its groundbreaking 256-bit security strength-related keys. Microchip's modular security solutions empower customers to select MCU sizes and pricing based on their applications, establishing a standardized single-security solution that addresses nearly all security requirements."

In a notable architectural alternative, the TA101 leverages off-chip components to handle secure boot and information verification, offering a viable solution for managing on-chip multicore MCU/MPU functions within in-vehicle networks. Compatible with an array of MCUs or MPUs, the TA101 presents a flexible solution that not only reduces costs but also expedites time to market. Furthermore, this state-of-the-art IC incorporates the U.S. Commercial National Security Algorithm Suite 1.0 and the ed25519 curve algorithm, pre-programmed and pre-configured through ALC_DVS.2 certified facilities, effectively mitigating risks associated with security code development and implementation.