What is ARM secure monitor?

What is ARM secure monitor?

This security feature—part of the ARM TrustZone extensions—uses a secure monitor call (SMC) instruction to switch between secure and non-secure modes. It can be used to implement digital rights management (DRM), secure payment, and more. The secure monitor also provides services for booting and idling the processor.

What are exception levels in arm?

ARMv8 architecture associates Exception levels with software execution privileges and defines a set of four Exception Levels (EL0, EL1, EL2 and EL3) where: With reference to privilege of execution, EL0 < EL1 < EL2 < EL3. EL3 is the highest privileged execution level.

How do I become PSA certified?

HOW TO EARN THE PSA CERTIFICATION:

1. Successfully complete the one-day Pricing Strategies: Mastering the CMA Course.
2. Submit application and one-time application fee of $179.
3. Be a member in good standing in NAR (or NAR cooperating international association)

When was ARM TrustZone introduced to the architecture?

Arm TrustZone was introduced to the Arm architecture A-profile in 2003. At the heart of the TrustZone approach is the concept of Secure and Normal worlds that are hardware separated. Secure hardware resources are only accessible by the software running in the Secure world.

How does TrustZone work on an arm phone?

Devices running on Arm, such as smartphones, can use TrustZone to perform the hardware-level isolation to keep the TEE secure. The Armv8-A profile provides TrustZone Extensions that can be used for SoCs with an integrated V6 or above MMU.

Which is the most privileged mode in TrustZone?

TrustZone adds a new EL3 (secure monitor mode), which is the most privileged level and controls the entire system. But TrustZone also allows the CPU to run in the secure mode at lower privileges, allowing privilege isolation within the TEE itself. The CPU can therefore also run in S-EL0 (secure user-mode) and S-EL1 (secure kernel-mode).

Which is the official reference board for ARM TrustZone?

The FreeScale i.MX platform places no restrictions on the use of the secure mode. But at the time we started, no Cortex-A9-based board was available. The most recent board i.MX53 featured a single-core Cortex-A8 processor. The ARM Versatile Express Cortex-A9 board is the official reference board by ARM, which supports ARM TrustZone.