SaTC: CORE: Small: Towards Securing the Hardware and Software for Approximate Computing Systems

近似计算（AC）以准确性换取性能和能效。AC在成像处理、音频识别、信息搜索和人工智能等各种计算密集型应用中越来越有吸引力。然而，最近的工作表明，AC系统中独特的近似行为和计算不确定性吸引了新的攻击机会。受损的AC模块将破坏整个计算系统的完整性和安全性，因为AC组件与同一系统中的非AC模块密切交互。本项目将识别在计算系统中应用近似机制的风险，并探索有效的方法来保护AC系统。本项目的目标是开发整体的，硬件和软件集成的方法来保护AC系统。具体而言，研究任务包括：（1）对AC系统的硬件和软件的安全漏洞进行深入研究，（2）开发定位易受攻击的AC模块的方法，（3）探索保护AC系统的硬件和软件混淆方法，（4）评估交叉攻击的抗毁性，该项目的成功实施将为军事、政府、交通、通信等领域的大规模节能计算系统提供安全保障，和商业应用。预计该项目将支持女博士。通过硬件和系统安全领域的女性研讨会（WISE），让更多的女性学生参与进来。该项目还将促进本科生的研究，并培养本科生参加国际安全竞赛。该项目的输出（源代码，文档，实验日志和学术出版物）将由版本控制系统Git管理。新开发的课程材料将由新罕布什尔州大学（UNH）的课程系统Canvas管理。所有数据和文件的本地副本将储存在联合国总部的备份服务器中。数据将在奖励期后至少保留三年。学术出版物、演示文稿和开源代码将在项目主页https://mypages.unh.edu/qyu/secure-approximate-computing-systems.This奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

Approximate Computing (AC) trades accuracy for performance and energy efficiency. AC is increasingly attractive in various computation-intensive applications such as imaging processing, audio recognition, information search, and artificial intelligence. However, recent work shows that the unique approximate behavior and computational uncertainty in AC systems attract new attack opportunities. Compromised AC modules will sabotage the integrity and security of the entire computing system because AC components closely interact with non-AC modules in the same system. This project will identify the risk of applying approximate mechanisms in computing systems and explore effective methods to protect AC systems.The objective of this project is to develop holistic, hardware-software integrated methods to secure AC systems. More specifically, the research tasks include: (1) performing a thorough study on the security vulnerabilities of the hardware and software for AC systems, (2) developing methods to locate the vulnerable AC modules, (3) exploring hardware and software obfuscation methods to secure AC systems, and (4) evaluating the attack resilience of a cross-layer proactive defense framework in practical applications.The success of this project will facilitate the security of large-scale energy-efficient computing systems used in military, government, transportation, and commercial applications. This project is expected to support female Ph.D. students and engage more women students via the Workshop for Women in Hardware and Systems Security (WISE). The project will also promote undergraduate research and train undergraduate students to compete in international security competitions.The output of the project (source code, documentation, experiment log, and scholarly publications) will be managed by the version control system Git. New developed curriculum materials will be managed by the course system Canvas at the University of New Hampshire (UNH). A local copy of all the data and documents will be stored in the backup servers at UNH. Data will be retained for at least three years beyond the award period. The scholarly publications, presentations, and open-source code will be available on the project homepage at https://mypages.unh.edu/qyu/secure-approximate-computing-systems.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.