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0 pointsamluto9y ago0 comments

> The other key feature usually found in HSMs but not smart cards is backup/cloning without exporting the key (in PKCS#11 terms). This means that the key can be moved between HSMs with all the protections in place. I've yet to see a smart card that does this.

How does this work? Can an attacker buy an identical HSM, back up the key, and restore it onto the new HSM?

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nicolas3149y ago

Theoretically yes, though you would have to explicitly switch the original HSM into backup mode, an operation that requires one or more admins to be present and strongly authenticated, most often with smart cards.

j_s9y ago

It sounds like that's exactly how it works (two months ago):

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12069784

The NitroKey HSM requires all previous setup (DKEK?) passwords and PINs. Anecdotal random unnamed vendor? Not so much:

They did, with undocumented commands, export the key from the device in an unencrypted format and loaded it into the other model

matthiasb9y ago

When you initialize your HSM, a key is created which is owned by you and stored in a smartcard/token. If you buy an identical HSM, you shoud need the token to restore keys into it.

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