Company to protect China's new devices

A chip company based in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, is looking to plug the security holes in China's enormous network of internet of things-connected devices with its new range of secure integrated circuits.

China will have nearly 5 billion connected devices by 2020, China Telecom Americas predicts, but many of these devices are highly vulnerable to hackers.

A recent report from the Jiangsu Center of China Economic Information Service identified more than 1,100 security holes threatening IoT devices worldwide in 2016.

The danger posed by these security holes was made clear in May, when the WannaCry ransomware virus affected more than 300,000 computers in 150 countries and regions.

But China Key System & Integrated Circuit (CKS) believes that it can dramatically lower the risk of hacking attacks on connected devices by installing its secure chips inside each internet-enabled device.

"A lot of loopholes threaten IoT information security, and our self-developed products are offering support to information security," said Sun Feng, the company's vice-general manager.

CKS' system uses a trans-flash card, a non-volatile memory card, equipped with a security microchip that identifies each user connected with the system.

When users communicate with each other through the system, it uses encryption and dynamic keys at both ends, allowing information to be transferred securely.

The company has already provided information security services for over 50,000 IoT terminals such as cell phones, internet gateways and controllers across China.

And as an early entrant to this important emerging industry, CKS believes that it is in a good position to become a leading player in the IoT security market.

"There are more than 100 companies authorized by the National Cryptography Administration to manufacture information security-related products, such as security chips, in China. Only a few manufacturers produce security chips and CKS is one of them," said Xu Nan, director of CKS' IoT innovation team.

The company has already deployed its TF card-based system in communications networks, buildings and a range of government systems.

CKS has worked particularly closely with the local government in Wuxi, which as one of the country's most enthusiastic promoters of smart city technology has a large number of connected devices to secure.

Wuxi has been using CKS' security systems to protect its networks for more than one year, and no information from the government's networks has been stolen or tampered with during that period, according to the company.

This success helped CKS' card security system to be named one of the top 10 IoT applications in Wuxi in 2016 by the local government.

CKS is also partnering with Wuxi and China Mobile to establish a national-level IoT information security center in the East China city.

Contact the writers at yangyang01@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 09/09/2017 page6)