Generating provable primes efficiently on embedded devices

Abstract

This paper introduces new techniques to generate provable prime numbers efficiently on embedded devices such as smartcards, based on variants of Pocklington's and the Brillhart-Lehmer-Selfridge-Tuckerman-Wagstaff theorems. We introduce two new generators that, combined with cryptoprocessor-specific optimizations, open the way to efficient and tamper-resistant on-board generation of provable primes. We also report practical results from our implementations. Both our theoretical and experimental results show that constructive methods can generate provable primes essentially as efficiently as state-of-the-art generators for probable primes based on Fermat and Miller-Rabin pseudo-tests. We evaluate the output entropy of our two generators and provide techniques to ensure a high level of resistance against physical attacks. This paper intends to provide practitioners with the first practical solutions for fast and secure generation of provable primes in embedded security devices. © 2012 International Association for Cryptologic Research.