Common Criteria

Common Criteria

Common CriteriaCommon CriteriaSecurityInternational IT security evaluation standard.Click to view → (CC) is an international framework for evaluating the security of IT products, standardized as ISO/IEC 15408 and ISO/IEC 18045. It provides a structured methodology for defining security requirements, implementing security functions, and having an independent laboratory verify that the product meets those requirements. In the smart card industry, Common Criteria certification is a prerequisite for deploying cards in government identity, payment, and telecom applications.

Evaluation Process

A Common Criteria evaluation involves three parties:

1. Sponsor/Developer — the smart card vendor who submits the product for evaluation
2. ITSEF — an accredited IT Security Evaluation Facility that performs the technical assessment
3. Certification Body — a national authority (BSI in Germany, ANSSI in France, NIAP in the US) that validates the evaluation results and issues the certificate

The developer writes a Security Target (ST) document describing the product's security claims. The ST references a Protection Profile (PP) that defines the baseline requirements for the product category. The ITSEFITSEFComplianceAccredited lab that performs Common Criteria smart card evaluations.Click to view → evaluates the product against the ST at the requested EAL level.

EAL Levels in Smart Cards

The "+" suffix indicates augmentation with additional assurance components beyond the base EALEALSecuritySecurity evaluation depth rating (1-7).Click to view →, typically AVA_VAN.5 (vulnerability analysis) for smart card chips.

Smart Card Protection Profiles

The smart card industry uses well-known Protection Profiles maintained by certification bodies:

• BSI-PP-0084 — Security IC Platform (chip hardware)
• BSI-PP-0075 — JavaCardJavaCardSoftwareJava applet platform for smart cards.Click to view → System (OS + runtime)
• PP-0035 — UICC/SIMSIMApplicationSmart card for mobile network authentication.Click to view → platform
• BSI-PP-0056 — ePassportePassportApplicationPassport with embedded contactless chip.Click to view → application

These profiles define mandatory security functional requirements including cryptographic key management, access control, and resistance to side-channel attacks and fault injection. Mutual recognition agreements (CCRA and SOGIS-MRA) allow certificates issued in one country to be accepted in other member nations.