Janice Hughes
Hughes Communications, Inc.
(705) 549-8952
janice@hughescom.net
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Real Time Logic Secures ASIC-Powered Devices as
OEMs Gear Up for High-Volume M2M Market
SharkSSL delivers high-bandwidth encryption for small footprint, resource-constrained
embedded devices
Monarch Beach, CA, April 2, 2013 ― Real Time Logic, device web server and security specialist, now
supports TLS 1.2 with its improved security and encryption in the latest version of SharkSSL, a compact,
fast cryptographic engine that delivers high-performance security. With this release, SharkSSL Version
2.5 extends its secure connectivity for resource-constrained, small-footprint processors to low-cost,
high-volume ASIC-powered M2M devices commonly used in large-scale networks for municipal utility
monitoring, medical record transmission, secure building access and monitoring, and smart grid
frameworks where secure message passing is essential.
Although TLS has become the defacto standard for information and communication standards at the
desktop and enterprise level, in a February 11, 2013 press release, ABIresearch noted the “porous
security” of M2M applications threatens to “throttle the successful adoption of M2M in healthcare,
industrial installations, and consumer homes.”
SharkSSL addresses this gap, bringing full end-to-end security to device communications with
proprietary software that enables developers to optimize their security implementation for size or
speed. As suppliers gear up to address the new high-volume opportunities in the M2M market, Real
Time Logic’s encryption libraries are highly optimized to address the Gbps challenge inherent in the
most demanding ASIC-driven applications. SharkSSL delivers very high bandwidth, while offering both
client and server side support for security certificates, certificate chains, and certificate authority
validation.
High-Performance TLS stack maximizes hardware capabilities
In integrating TLS 1.2 into SharkSSL, Real Time Logic implements the stronger cryptographic algorithm,
improved encryption, and superior message authentication proven to secure TCP/IP communications at
Real Time Logic Secures ASIC-Powered Devices as OEMs Gear Up for High-Volume M2M Market
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the enterprise level into the small, resource-constrained footprint of an embedded device. SharkSSL
implements the new Secure Hash Algorithm-256 (SHA-256), which replaces outdated hash functions and
can be used to verify the integrity of copies of the original data without compromising the source.
The latest version of SharkSSL also supports the internationally adopted Advanced Encryption Standard
(AES) and Galois/Counter Mode (GCM)—technologies that combine message encryption and
authentication into a single function that can be transferred at high throughput rates by taking
advantage of the parallel processing of the architecture. Fine-tuned to take advantage of hardware
functionality, SharkSSL offloads encryption libraries to crypto units on high-bandwidth platforms
commonly found in ASICs or processors such as Freescale’s ColdFire or Kinetis K60.
“With projections indicating that the M2M market will be worth $198 million by the end of 2018, highvolume ASIC devices will underlie much of the infrastructure that we depend on,” noted Wilfred Nilsen,
CEO, Real Time Logic. “With the increasing threat of cyberattack, it is critical that we secure this
infrastructure at the device level in order to ensure that all possible avenues for exploitation have been
secured. By SharkSSL delivering not only this level of security, but also the high throughput now
demanded by the most advanced applications, it addresses many of the critical pain points OEMs
struggle to meet today.”
The new SharkSSL, with its assembly-written big integer library, also delivers record-breaking
performance on processors without specialized crypto units. While keeping code size to a minimum,
SharkSSL V2.5 is capable of performing a private RSA operation in 100 ms on a Cortex-M3 running at 100
MHz, a speed 60 percent faster than competitors’.
SharkSSL includes a specifically designed and optimized, C code SMTP library. The SMTP library makes it
possible to send email messages via email servers that require encrypted communication. The library
supports STARTTLS and SMTPS, ensuring compatibility with online services such as Google Mail and
Hotmail. For companies where a TLS/SSL stack is not required, Real Time Logic offers a stripped down
version of SharkSSL called RayCrypto. RayCrypto includes cryptographic libraries supporting
authentication and encryption algorithms.
Broad processor and OS support
Optimized to take advantage of encryption acceleration, SharkSSL achieves unmatched throughput on
ColdFire, Kinetis K60, and all the Cortex-M3 and -M4 processors. Available as source code, SharkSSL
code can be implemented on any processor off the shelf. The SharkSSL library has been successfully
deployed on ARM, Freescale, and PowerPC-based FPGA architectures. Other processors and
accelerators can be accommodated upon request.
Out-of-the-box operating system (OS) support includes INTEGRITY™, MQX™, SMX™, ThreadX™,
VxWorks™, EBSnet™, rtplatform, uCLinux™, Linux, and Windows™. It can also be used in bare-metal (no
OS) configurations. Multi-threading is available for added performance when using an OS that supports
multi-threading.
Real Time Logic Secures ASIC-Powered Devices as OEMs Gear Up for High-Volume M2M Market
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Royalty-free SSL licensing
SharkSSL V2.5 is available immediately and comes with full source code and royalty-free licenses starting
at $8,000. The SMTP library and prototype applications included with SharkSSL are free.
About Real Time Logic
Real Time Logic delivers fast, enterprise-level security and web functionality on compact, low-power
devices that meets today’s demand for secure, remote management and control. Highly optimized for
embedded devices, Real Time Logic’s Barracuda Application Server, Barracuda Web Server, and SharkSSL
enable developers to incorporate the latest design and security into powerful web-based applications
that offer dynamic, rich, user-friendly interfaces. These extremely compact tools power a broad range of
remote devices in industrial and building control, military, and medical markets. Founded in 2006, Real
Time Logic is headquartered in Monarch Beach, CA, and has a worldwide distributor network. For more
information, visit www.realtimelogic.com.
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