CommScope and STMicroelectronics collaborate

CommScope  and STMicroelectronics have announced the integration of CommScope’s PKIWorks™ IoT security platform with ST’s popular STM32WB microcontroller unit (MCU). This integrated solution offers device manufacturers a turnkey solution for developing IoT devices that meet the Connectivity Standards Alliance’s Matter standard for security.

The solution simplifies manufacturing secure Matter-device-credentials development and provisioning, in addition to reducing costs and time for IoT device manufacturers. With this integration, devices can be commissioned at the MCU level without developer intervention. This collaboration harnesses 35 years of experience from the CommScope Sentry™ team securely integrating cryptographic keys and digital certificates into high-volume manufacturing production with ST’s leadership in microcontrollers and development ecosystem.

“As a CSA promoter, ST is committed to making Matter development seamless for all device makers,” said Nathalie Vallespin, STM32 Connectivity product line manager, STMicroelectronics. “Our #1 ranking for general-purpose microcontrollers and expertise in secure elements positions us to combine our deep understanding of device-makers’ challenges and strong knowledge of Matter to create unique collaborations like this one with CommScope. This will accelerate the adoption of Matter development through an easy and secure process for credential provisioning.”

“By integrating the CommScope Sentry PKIWorks platform with ST’s popular MCU platform, we’re offering our customers a turnkey solution to alleviate the challenges of Matter adoption, while handling the complexity, scale, and cost,” stated Bart Giordano, president, Networking, Intelligent Cellular and Security Solutions, CommScope. “CommScope and ST have a long-standing collaborative relationship, making it easy to meet growing demand for new Matter IoT devices with the expertise of two industry leaders with decades of experience at the forefront of digital security, semiconductor solutions, and device manufacturing.”

About PKIWorks, STM32WB and Matter

The PKIWorks platform is a secure and flexible credential provisioning and management platform, refined over decades of experience and billions of device credentials. It is now optimised for creating and delivering Matter device credentials — providing a fast track for manufacturers of all IoT devices to provide security and interoperability with the burgeoning Matter ecosystem. The PKIWorks platform leverages CommScope’s expertise in provisioning clients for device credential installation, particularly on resource-constrained IoT devices. These clients enable the support of a wide range of STM32 MCUs and STSAFE-A. CommScope recently integrated this lightweight provisioning client with the STM32WB55, an MCU for IoT device development and ST’s microcontroller of choice for Matter devices.

Matter is the new unifying smart home standard for interoperability and security among smart home devices. Announced in October 2022, the specifications and certification programs are the result of a collaboration involving more than 600 technology companies under the auspices of the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA). Matter makes smart home devices interoperable while improving and standardising security across suppliers and IoT ecosystems, it also offers consumers a seal of approval that says smart devices work reliably together and are secure.

Key PKIWorks Features

The PKIWorks platform can generate over 30 billion device credentials annually and is designed to scale to even greater capacity, providing a solid foundation for future expansion.

The platform generates Matter device credentials for a wide spectrum of IoT manufacturers and service providers, using the CSA-approved Root of Trust and the CommScope Product Attestation Authority (PAA).

The PKIWorks Provisioning Client can install various types of device credentials to STM32 and STSAFE-A —including the STM32WB55 microcontroller designed specifically for Matter devices.

The STM32WB55 Matter SDK integration enables Matter Commissioning without the need for additional integration effort from device makers.

PKIWorks solutions encompass both factory settings and over-the-air provisioning, providing Device Attestation Credentials (DACs) and Node Operational Credentials (NOCs) to support the security lifecycle of Matter devices.

PKIWorks services are available to device manufacturers designing with the STM32 and STSAFE-A. CommScope is a member of the ST Authorised Partner program, and CommScope’s Sentry offers integrated solutions that dramatically simplifies product development by streamlining device credential provisioning in manufacturing, accelerating time-to-market. The STM32WB with the PKIWorks client is available now and is also offered in multiple configurations to meet the diverse manufacturing environments of IoT device providers.