
USB-IF Launches USB Type-C Authentication Program - yannikyeo
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190102005063/en/USB-IF-Launches-USB-Type-C%E2%84%A2-Authentication-Program/
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m0llusk
Proprietary chargers and cables that work might be better than the mess
consumers have to contend with now. Pretty much any USB-C cable or device may
or may not work with others as intended. Something has to be done and this
kind of authentication program seems to have some capacity to address current
failings of USB-C products.

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out_of_protocol
* A standard protocol for authenticating certified USB Type-C chargers, devices, cables and power sources

* Relies on 128-bit security for all cryptographic methods

* USB-IF selected DigiCert to manage the PKI and certificate authority services for the USB Type-C Authentication Program

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mttyng
This might be overly cynical (and I'm not going to address the utility of such
a USB safety net), but I can see this being used as a way to only allow
<insert your multi-national tech corp. here>-approved chargers.

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drbawb
I don't think that's overly cynical at all. Proprietary chargers has been the
norm for years now. Many Dells and HP machines I have owned will accept power
from 3rd party chargers, but refuse to charge the battery. Typically the
workarounds are either patch it out of the firmware, or steal the
authentication chip from a defunct 1st-party charger. Both workarounds are far
from ideal. (The former means you can no longer take automated firmware
updates, and the latter means modifying a power supply that runs off mains
voltage.)

What I'd like to see happen is that a consortium issues certificates that sign
_capabilities_ , rather than signing _identities._ Essentially the charger
says "the UL/USB-IF/etc. has certified me up to 18W" as opposed to "Apple
built me" which seems to be the logic the industry has been using prior to
USB-C.

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sneak
Didn’t they try this already with DVDs and HDMI?

Countdown until device private key and certificate extraction is successful
begins now.

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nimish
A return to proprietary chargers :(

