The open spec promises the development of more secure and private mobile phone applications. Reducing the risk of loss and theft for mobile phone users and handset makers is another goal, said TCG.
By working together and establishing standards, the mobile industry can move more quickly and efficiently to embed security mechanisms into phones, said Iain Gillot, founder of iGR, formerly iGillot Research, in a statement. More security at the platform level can only help the industry continue to offer the services, handset features and content that users want.
The new spec assumes the implementation of a mobile phone as a set of trusted engines, or places that manipulate data, within the device. Each engine would report its state so its trustworthiness can be established. The spec assumes phones will include multiple trusted engines, each addressing specific functions including the device, cellular service, applications and user services.
Each engine will have access to trusted Services, which measures code modules and stores measurements in the Mobile Trusted Module, a protected area of the phone. The M can be implemented in a number of ways, since the TCG specification defines functionality but not implementation. For example, the M could be a discrete silicon chip or a system-on-a-chip.
The draft M spec is complimentary with existing mobile phone components, including SIM, USIM and UICC cards, and with specs from industry groups such as 3GPP, Open Mobile Alliance, Open Mobile Terminal Platform and the Mobile Industry Processor Interface Alliance, said the TCG.
Products based on the new spec are expected to be in development soon, according to the TCG.
