Flip-Break: Breaking Flip-flop-based Logic Locking in Sequential Circuits

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Beitragende

  • Transregio 404: Next Generation Electronics With Active Devices in Three Dimensions

Abstract

Machine learning (ML)-based attacks have shown that even the most advanced logic locking methods leave structural traces in circuits due to optimizations of security-agnostic synthesis tools. However, these attacks mainly focus on purely combinational logic locking techniques, like XOR/XNOR-based or MUX-based approaches. To mitigate structural leakages caused by synthesis tools, a novel flip-flop-based approach named Flip-Lock has been introduced. By incorporating sequential elements into locking substructures, this flip-flop-based logic locking approach prevents synthesis optimizations, effectively neutralizing all state-of-the-art structural attacks. This paper demonstrates that while flip-flop-based logic locking effectively mitigates the structural leakages left by synthesis tools; it may introduce flip-flop-relevant structural traces. These traces can reveal distinctions between the added locking flip-flops and the original flip-flops of the circuit. By reframing the problem as flip-flop classification rather than key extraction, we introduce Flip-Break, an Oracle-less Graph Neural Network (GNN)-based attack designed to target flip-flop-based logic locking. Flip-Break reveals that the added secure flip-flops differ from the original flip-flops in their local sub-structures, as they are randomly inserted into the circuit. We show that Flip-Break gains an average accuracy of in breaking add-on flip-flop-based secure layers for various benchmark circuits.

Details

OriginalspracheEnglisch
TitelGLSVLSI 2025 - Proceedings of the Great Lakes Symposium on VLSI 2025
Herausgeber (Verlag)Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
Seiten463-469
Seitenumfang7
ISBN (elektronisch)979-8-4007-1496-2
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 29 Juni 2025
Peer-Review-StatusJa

Publikationsreihe

ReiheProceedings of the ACM Great Lakes Symposium on VLSI, GLSVLSI

Konferenz

Titel35th Great Lakes Symposium on VLSI 2025
KurztitelGLSVLSI 2025
Veranstaltungsnummer35
Dauer30 Juni - 2 Juli 2025
Webseite
OrtThe Jung Hotel New Orleans
StadtNew Orleans
LandUSA/Vereinigte Staaten

Schlagworte

Forschungsprofillinien der TU Dresden

ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete

Schlagwörter

  • Flip-Flop-based Logic Locking, GNN, Structural attacks