Summary

Confidential computing secures data even while it's in use, closing the critical vulnerability where information is exposed in system memory. By leveraging specialized hardware enclaves, organizations can prevent malicious insiders and compromised administrators from exfiltrating sensitive data.

Key Topics

• Trusted Execution Environment (TEE): A TEE acts as a digital vault inside the CPU. It ensures that even if the host operating system or a system administrator is compromised, they cannot peer into the memory or manipulate the data currently being processed.
• Data in Use: This is the 'missing link' in modern security. While we have mature methods to secure data on disks and over the network, data in use has traditionally been vulnerable because it must be decrypted to be processed, leaving it exposed to anyone with system-level access.
• SPDM (Security Protocol and Data Model): This protocol is the glue that enables confidential computing across distributed components. It allows for encrypted, authenticated channels between chips, ensuring that data moving through a server chassis cannot be intercepted.

Key Takeaways

• Assess your organization's compliance requirements for protecting 'data in use'.