News
Trusted Connectivity Alliance Publishes Guidance to Support Increased Development and Deployment of Integrated SIM Solutions
April 2022 by Marc Jacob
Trusted Connectivity Alliance (TCA) has published a new paper that aims to broaden technical understanding and acceptance of integration across the mobile ecosystem, by providing actionable insights and guidance that will help those considering the deployment of secure, interoperable integrated SIM solutions.
An integrated SIM is defined as a solution where SIM or eSIM functionality is implemented on a hardware Tamper Resistant Element (TRE) integrated within a host System-on-Chip (SoC). In an earlier paper, TCA confirmed its support for the GSMA’s integrated eUICC solution as it offers the most potential to meet increasing market demand for integrated SIM deployments and ensures that integrated SIM technologies have the same security and interoperability levels as their embedded and removable SIM counterparts.
The newly published paper, titled ‘Integrated SIM: A Practical Approach’, builds on TCA’s advocacy for the GSMA’s integrated eUICC initiative and provides more detail to help SIM vendors, SoC makers, mobile operators, device manufacturers, service providers and test tool developers deploy integrated SIM solutions. This detail includes a summary of architectural approaches to integrated SIM design that enable the delivery of advanced performance without compromising security, as well as an analysis of the subsequent impact of integration across the mobile ecosystem and associated value chains.
The paper also offers a comprehensive overview of the GSMA compliance process for integrated eUICC solutions, demonstrating the significant benefits unlocked by the synergies with the existing, proven eSIM technical infrastructure, along with a description of conformance testing requirements.
TCA evolved from the SIMalliance in February 2020, reflecting the continued expansion of the global SIM industry and the need for broader industry collaboration among all ecosystem participants beyond traditional SIM manufacturers. As a global, non-profit industry association, TCA works to enable trust in a connected future. The organisation’s vision is to drive the sustained growth of a connected society through trusted connectivity which protects assets, end user privacy and networks. Its members are leaders within the global TRE ecosystem.
