New SAE International Standard Establishes Accreditation Requirements for Labs Detecting Counterfeit Electrical and Electronic Parts and Components

https://www.sae.org/news/press-room/2018/06/new-sae-international-standard-establishes-accreditation-requirements-for-labs-detecting-counterfeit-electrical-and-electronic-parts-and-components

A new technical standard from SAE International establishes criteria to achieve consistency in the accreditation of test laboratories performing detection of suspect/counterfeit electrical, electronic and electromechanical (EEE) parts and component.

“AS6810: Requirements for Accreditation Bodies when Accrediting Test Laboratories Performing Detection of Suspect/Counterfeit in Accordance with AS6171 General Requirements and the Associated Test Methods” was created and developed by SAE International’s G-19A Test Laboratory Standards Development Committee.

AS6810 provides assessment requirements and guidance to ISO/IEC 17025 Accreditation Bodies for accreditation of test laboratories capabilities in detecting suspect/counterfeit electrical, electronic and electromechanical parts.  It will establish conformance to AS6171 – General Requirements for the scope of Test Methods within the AS6171 slash sheet(s). Test method-specific competence criteria are detailed in each individual AS6171 Test Method’s slash sheet.

SAE International’s G-19 Counterfeit Electronic Components Committee is chartered to address aspects of preventing, detecting, responding to and counteracting the threat of counterfeit electronic components. SAE continually seeks qualified professionals to serve on the G-19 Standards Committee. Interested participant can learn more by contacting Jordanna Bucciere at Jordanna.Bucciere@sae.org.

For more information about AS6810 or to purchase the standard, visit https://www.sae.org/standards/content/as6810/. 

SAE International is a global association committed to being the ultimate knowledge source for the engineering profession. By uniting over 127,000 engineers and technical experts, we drive knowledge and expertise across a broad spectrum of industries. We act on two priorities: encouraging a lifetime of learning for mobility engineering professionals and setting the standards for industry engineering. We strive for a better world through the work of our philanthropic SAE Foundation, including programs like A World in Motion® and the Collegiate Design Series™.

Fake flash memory can now be detected with simple technique

https://www.securingindustry.com/electronics-and-industrial/fake-flash-memory-can-now-be-detected-with-simple-technique/s105/a7754/#.WxFege4vw5t

Researchers have come up with a way to detect fake flash memory, one of the most widely counterfeited electronic components.

According to the researchers from The University of Alabama in Huntsville, flash memory – a non-volatile digital storage medium that stores data on a chip – is increasingly at high risk of counterfeiting because of its widespread use in electronic systems, including space applications and consumer electronics.

However, there have been few feasible solutions to detect counterfeits and recycled flash with high confidence mainly been because of the variability among different flash chips, the researchers said.  

To address this, the team developed a detection method based on a combination of the statistical distribution of various timing characteristics of memory and the number of faulty bits (the smallest unit of data in a computer).

The team was able to detect counterfeit flash memory with close to 100 per cent confidence.

“Most researchers focus on fail bit count or how fast the chip can read and write – they never worry about programme-erase time,” said Bahar Talukder, a graduate student involved with the development.

“But while fail bit count and read and write time do show changes, programme-erase time is the best metric because it shows the most amount of variation.” It’s also more consistent across manufacturers and tends to increase noticeably even after just a few programme-erase cycles, he added.

The researchers performed erase operations on sample flash memory chips and recorded the erase time. They found that programme time decreases, while erase time increases with the increasing number of programme-erase count. Fail bit count was found to increase with the increasing number of programme-erase count. 

The team found that they could achieve a 100 per cent confidence level of accurately detecting a recycled memory for a flash with just 3 per cent usage, noting that detection confidence increases with higher usage.

The technique was deemed inexpensive, non-destructive (in that is does not wear out the flash chip) and required no additional hardware or hardware modification. It was also widely applicable to a wide range of flash chips from different manufacturers.  

The team, which has filed several patent applications, hopes to turn the method into a smartphone application and a browser extension.

The researchers said the development was a significant move in being able to curb counterfeits and safeguard the electronic systems used in vital infrastructure.

“Failure of flash memory in critical applications can have catastrophic effects, from simply corrupting the system to enabling a hardware trojan attack. So, there is a big demand for this ability to detect counterfeit flash with high confidence,” said Dr M. Tauhidur Rahman, assistant professor at the university’s department of electrical and computer engineering.

The problem exists because of the high turnover of consumer electronics, with upgrades available annually, yet most of the electronic components remain functional once the old device is replaced with the upgrade. This e-waste is increasingly recycled and fraudulently resold as new. While the components remain functional, their life span, however, is greatly reduced, which can have adverse effects.

The problem has been further exacerbated in recent years as the semiconductor supply chain has shifted from a vertical to a horizontal model. “Because of manufacturers’ enhanced reliance on independent suppliers, these electronic systems are at a lot more risk of counterfeiting and piracy than ever,” said Dr Biswajit Ray, an assistant professor at the University’s department of electrical and computer engineering.

Furthermore, Ray added, counterfeiters are getting more savvy, making it harder to tell whether components in any given electronic system are fresh or recycled. All these factors highlight the need for a detection system.

However, developing a detection system that is sufficiently accurate has been challenging. Current approaches rely on the maintenance of an extensive database or on manufactures’ willingness to adopt sensor-based approaches.

The proposed method is now being tested against temperature and voltage variations, while a detection method using programme disturb characteristics is also being explored by the research team.