Cryptography Research
Encyclopedia
Cryptography Research, Inc.. is a San Francisco based cryptography company specializing in applied cryptographic engineering, including technologies for building tamper-resistant semiconductors. It was purchased on June 6, 2011 by Rambus
for more than $250M in cash and stock. The company licenses patents for protecting cryptographic devices against power analysis
attacks. The company's CryptoFirewall-brand ASIC
cores are used in pay TV conditional access systems and anti-counterfeiting applications. CRI also developed BD+
, a security component in the Blu-ray disc format, and played a role in the format war between HD DVD
and Blu-ray. The company's services group assists with security testing, disaster recovery, and training.
Cryptography Research protects its core operations from outside attack by maintaining a secured local network that is not connected to the Internet
at all. Employees who need to work with sensitive data have two computers on their desks — one to access the secure network, and a separate computer to access the Internet.
In 2009, Frost & Sullivan
awarded the company the World Smart Card Technology Leadership of the Year Award, noting that the company is "one of the highest-volume and highest-value technology licensors in the semiconductor industry" and that "more than 4 billion security chips are produced under its licenses every year".
Rambus
Rambus Incorporated , founded in 1990, is a technology licensing company. The company became well known for its intellectual property based litigation following the introduction of DDR-SDRAM memory.- History :...
for more than $250M in cash and stock. The company licenses patents for protecting cryptographic devices against power analysis
Power analysis
In cryptography, power analysis is a form of side channel attack in which the attacker studies the power consumption of a cryptographic hardware device...
attacks. The company's CryptoFirewall-brand ASIC
ASIC
ASIC may refer to:* Application-specific integrated circuit, an integrated circuit developed for a particular use, as opposed to a customised general-purpose device.* ASIC programming language, a dialect of BASIC...
cores are used in pay TV conditional access systems and anti-counterfeiting applications. CRI also developed BD+
BD+
BD+ is a component of the Blu-ray Disc Digital Rights Management system. It was developed by Cryptography Research Inc. and is based on their Self-Protecting Digital Content concept...
, a security component in the Blu-ray disc format, and played a role in the format war between HD DVD
HD DVD
HD DVD is a discontinued high-density optical disc format for storing data and high-definition video.Supported principally by Toshiba, HD DVD was envisioned to be the successor to the standard DVD format...
and Blu-ray. The company's services group assists with security testing, disaster recovery, and training.
Cryptography Research protects its core operations from outside attack by maintaining a secured local network that is not connected to the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
at all. Employees who need to work with sensitive data have two computers on their desks — one to access the secure network, and a separate computer to access the Internet.
In 2009, Frost & Sullivan
Frost & Sullivan
Frost & Sullivan, Inc. is an American firm which provides market research & analysis, growth strategy consulting and corporate training services. Its headquarters are located in San Antonio, Texas, with offices in over 20 countries across the world....
awarded the company the World Smart Card Technology Leadership of the Year Award, noting that the company is "one of the highest-volume and highest-value technology licensors in the semiconductor industry" and that "more than 4 billion security chips are produced under its licenses every year".