21-09-2008, 11:41 AM
Definition
In this seminar ,is giving some basic concepts about smart cards. The physical and logical structure of the smart card and the corresponding security access control have been discussed in this seminar . It is believed that smart cards offer more security and confidentiality than the other kinds of information or transaction storage. Moreover, applications applied with smart card technologies are illustrated which demonstrate smart card is one of the best solutions to provide and enhance their system with security and integrity.
The seminar also covers the contactless type smart card briefly. Different kinds of scheme to organise and access of multiple application smart card are discussed. The first and second schemes are practical and workable on these days, and there is real applications developed using those models. For the third one, multiple independent applications in a single card, there is still a long way to go to make it becomes feasible because of several reasons.
At the end of the paper, an overview of the attack techniques on the smart card is discussed as well. Having those attacks does not mean that smart card is unsecure. It is important to realise that attacks against any secure systems are nothing new or unique. Any systems or technologies claiming 100% secure are irresponsible. The main consideration of determining whether a system is secure or not depends on whether the level of security can meet the requirement of the system.
The smart card is one of the latest additions to the world of information technology. Similar in size to today's plastic payment card, the smart card has a microprocessor or memory chip embedded in it that, when coupled with a reader, has the processing power to serve many different applications. As an access-control device, smart cards make personal and business data available only to the appropriate users. Another application provides users with the ability to make a purchase or exchange value. Smart cards provide data portability, security and convenience. Smart cards come in two varieties: memory and microprocessor.
Memory cards simply store data and can be viewed as a small floppy disk with optional security. A microprocessor card, on the other hand, can add, delete and manipulate information in its memory on the card. Similar to a miniature computer, a microprocessor card has an input/output port operating system and hard disk with built-in security features. On a fundamental level, microprocessor cards are similar to desktop computers. They have operating systems, they store data and applications, they compute and process information and they can be protected with sophisticated security tools. The self-containment of smart card makes it resistant to attack as it does not need to depend upon potentially vulnerable external resources. Because of this characteristic, smart cards are often used in different applications, which require strong security protection and authentication
