IC decryption, also known as IC attack or IC break, is commonly used to refer to the process of accessing the program inside IC chips. While these terms are not strictly scientific, they have become accepted in the industry. The term “IC decryption” is often used to describe the process of decrypting CPLD and DSP chips, as well as other types of ICs that can load and encrypt programs, such as AVR, ARM, and PLD chips.
Some IC chips are designed with special encryption algorithms and manufacturer code verification to prevent electronic product copying. Microcontrollers (MCUs) typically have internal EEPROM/FLASH programs that are encrypted with lock orientation or lock-bit bytes to protect the program from unauthorized access or copying (IC extraction).
If the programming lock-bit encryption is enabled, the program cannot be read directly within the IC using an ordinary programmer. This is referred to as encryption or microcontroller chip encryption. However, with the use of special equipment or home-made tools, IC copyers can exploit design flaws or software defects in individual ICs to extract key source or firmware, and access the program inside the microcontroller IC chip.