GlobalPlatform has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with China’s Telecommunication Terminal Testing Technology Association (TAF), enabling the bodies to align their work efforts to advance interoperable and standardized mobile device security worldwide.

TAF is a Chinese non-profit member organization comprised of service providers, smartphone and chipset manufacturers. It was founded by GlobalPlatform Full Member China Academy of Information and Communication Technology (CAICT), and facilitates the functional testing, compliance activity and sourcing of security technology for the telecommunications market.

Through the collaboration, GlobalPlatform will support TAF’s adoption of an internationally standardized trusted execution environment (TEE) based on GlobalPlatform’s Specifications. Using insight provided by TAF into the security requirements of the Chinese telecoms market, GlobalPlatform will determine if extensions are required to its TEE Specifications to meet the needs of Chinese stakeholders. The bodies will also explore certification process alignment.  

The TEE is a secure area of the main processor in a smartphone (or any connected device) which ensures that sensitive data is stored, processed and protected in an isolated, trusted environment. It addresses the needs of most applications by offering a higher level of security than a Rich OS and greater functionality than the secure element (SE).   

"We are excited to partner with GlobalPlatform and to contribute to its efforts to develop an open and interoperable secure infrastructure,” comments Xie Yi Ph. D, President of TAF. “I am confident that this collaboration will support the development and deployment of secure technologies, like the TEE, which address the security requirements of the key markets around the world in a consistent and standardized way.”

“China is facing the same challenges as many markets around the world; sensitive services are moving to smartphones and greater security is needed,” comments Gil Bernabeu, Technical Director of GlobalPlatform. “TAF and CAICT are looking to offer greater protection to smartphone users by adopting and contributing to an international standard.  

“GlobalPlatform Specifications are constantly being enhanced and this partnership will ensure alignment between the standardized TEE infrastructure developed by GlobalPlatform and a market where smartphone development and innovation is progressing rapidly.”