A comparison study of intel SGX and AMD memory encryption technology

Abstract

Hardware-assisted trusted execution environments are secure isolation technologies that have been engineered to serve as efficient defense mechanisms to provide a security boundary at the system level. Hardware vendors have introduced a variety of hardware-assisted trusted execution environments including ARM TrustZone, Intel Management Engine, and AMD Platform Security Processor. Recently, Intel Software Guard eXtensions (SGX) and AMD Memory Encryption Technology have been introduced. To the best of our knowledge, this paper presents the first comparison study between Intel SGX and AMD Memory Encryption Technology in terms of functionality, use scenarios, security, and performance implications. We summarize the pros and cons of these two approaches in comparison to each other.