Microservice architectures exploit container-based virtualized services, which rarely use
hardware-based cryptography. A trusted platform module (TPM) offers a hardware root for trust
in services that makes use of cryptographic operations. The virtualization of this hardware module
offers high usability for other types of service that require TPM functionalities. This paper proposes
the design of TPM virtualization in a container. To ensure integrity, different mechanisms, such as
attestation and sealing, have been developed for the binaries and libraries stored in the container
volumes. Through a REST API, the container offers the functionalities of a TPM, such as key
generation and signing. To prevent unauthorized access to the container, this article proposes an
authentication mechanism based on tokens issued by the Cognito Amazon Web Service. As a proof
of concept and applicability in industry, a use case for electric vehicle charging stations using a
microservice-based architecture is proposed. Using the EOS.IO blockchain to maintain a copy of
the data, the virtualized TPM microservice provides the cryptographic operations necessary for
blockchain transactions. Through a two-factor authentication mechanism, users can access the data.
This scenario shows the potential of using blockchain technologies in microservice-based architectures,
where microservices such as the virtualized TPM fill a security gap in these architectures.Infineon TechnologiesProgram “Digitalisierung der EnergiewendeBundesministeriums für
Wirtschaft und EnergieTrusted Blockchains fur das offene, intelligente
Energienetz der Zukunft (tbiEnergy)FKZ 03EI6029DEuropean Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA) program under Grant
Agreement No 101092950 (EDGELESS project)FEDER/Junta de
Andalucia-Consejeria de Transformacion Economica, Industria, Conocimiento y Universidades under
Project B-TIC-588-UGR20
