Connected Devices Need More Secure Memory [Byline]

TORONTO — Emerging use cases are revealing the many ways memory technologies can be an avenue for threat actors to create havoc, whether for stealing data or sending malicious instructions.

Security features in memory aren’t new, of course. The “s” in SD card initially stood for “secure,” but the SD Association hasn’t really emphasized it for a decade, while electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) has long been used for applications that need embedded security such as credit cards, SIM cards and key-less entry systems, among others.

But as different kinds of memory are put into a wider variety of systems — such as automotive, manufacturing and the Internet of Things (IoT) — the need for security has greatly increased. The question is not only where that security will be integrated, but how it will be managed, especially in embedded memories that are expected to remain in a device for years, possibly decades.

Read the full story on EE Times.

Gary Hilson is a freelance writer with a focus on B2B technology, including information technology, cybersecurity, and semiconductors.

Persistent Memory Platform Support Will Take Time [Portfolio]

TORONTO — Over the last several years, there’s been an increasing overlap between what was traditionally seen as memory and traditionally seen as storage, as well as the increasing use of persistent memory.

Last week’s Persistent Memory Summit in San Jose, organized by the Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) as part of its Solid State Storage Initiative (SSSI), included a presentation by Steve Pawlowski, vice president of advance computing solutions at Micron, outlining how computing architectures must change to get the right data to the processor efficiently and how persistent memory such as NVDIMMs can play a role.

EE Times spoke to Pawlowski following his SNIA keynote on why new computing architectures must support current software applications, the current roadmap for NV-DIMMs, and what might be the non-volatile memory of choice down the road.

Read my full Q+A on EE Times.