I.e since every little thing is implementable in a (Turing full) CPU then how does it matter whether or not a Safe Ingredient has assist for Bitcoin’s cryptographic primitives – aside from making signing and decryption quicker.
Firstly I feel that is barely a false impression, you will need to be capable to do ECC operations effectively which is why a theoretical Safe Ingredient (SE) with these capabilities would have to be environment friendly. Nonetheless the purpose of them is to not compete with the effectivity of say a desktop processor, the purpose is to have a verifiably appropriate and discrete processor that’s environment friendly sufficient do do the operations on a small gadget.
Would a tool with a generic CPU the place the software program cannot be modified (with out dropping the secrets and techniques as nicely) with safety towards bodily assaults already be “the dream {hardware} pockets” which does not assist key export it doesn’t matter what?
I’m not positive that good playing cards match this description completely, they retailer data and require bodily interplay to launch secrets and techniques however usually are not made for generic CPU processing if that’s what you’re suggesting.
I need to make clear I’m definitely not an knowledgeable on this subject however from what I’ve researched the rationale a wise card (SC) shouldn’t be safer than a SE is since you are inable to safe personal key operations on the SC, you’ll be able to solely use it to retailer the personal knowledge. The SE having the aptitude for secp256k1 (which apparently none do atm) would can help you do signing utterly airgapped out of your doubtlessly susceptible or already exploited private pc system or native pc community. That being stated there are non-secp256k1 associated personal operations that may be executed on the SE, which within the case of an SC would have to be carried out in your private pc system which is an elevated assault floor.
Ledger as an example claims that they use the SE to generate personal keys:
Safe Ingredient Chip Protects Your Ledger From Assaults
A Safe Ingredient is a extremely superior chip that mitigates a whole lot of several types of assaults. This cutting-edge chip, which is utilized in high-level safety options, actually units Ledger aside as a top-end safety answer for crypto belongings. All of our gadgets use a Safe Ingredient, which enormously enhances their safety. Ledger makes use of them to generate and retailer personal keys on your crypto belongings.
I don’t advocate utilizing ledger in mild of their current press releases nevertheless that is an instance of how a SE is perhaps used.
Blockstream Jade adopts a special safety mannequin not primarily based on SE which you’ll discover to be related:
As an alternative of a safe ingredient, Blockstream Jade makes use of a singular safety mannequin that permits it to stay absolutely open-source whereas additionally being protected against bodily assaults and attaining related (if not higher) safety from this potential risk – by performing as a “digital” safe ingredient.
The blind oracle mannequin that Jade makes use of is absolutely open supply, and is really blind. It is aware of nothing about Jade pockets knowledge, and would not even know the person’s precise PIN. Customers might use Blockstream’s blind oracle to guard their pockets, or they could run their very own.
From what I can surmise, an SE may be helpful for sure personal operations equivalent to producing a key nevertheless it doesn’t shut the assault floor utterly. An SC as a result of it can not do any personal operations is a extra open assault floor as a result of it delegates personal operations to any pc system you plug it into. An open supply blind oracle mannequin could also be an efficient approach to lower the assault floor when utilizing a SC or {hardware} with the same safety mannequin equivalent to I imagine Jade would possibly fall into. Nonetheless since all SEs up to now are closed supply it is probably not a viable possibility for SE primarily based wallets to implement blind oracles to guard personal key operations but.
