Protecting interactive DVB broadcasts: How to enable receivers to authenticate interactive applications and protect the consumer from attacks on their smart TVs

The digitalization of modern television broadcasts makes it possible to provide interactive content to consumers over the air. But the hitherto unsecured nature of such broadcasts combined with the ever-increasing complexity of Smart TV software have created an opportunity for attackers to strike at consumers. DVB has updated the relevant standard to allow broadcasters to secure their services against manipulation and protect consumers from malicious content. This paper is intended to provide background information on the threat that made this new standard necessary as well as introduce the core concepts of the standard and provide relevant references for further reading. The author has been part of the standardization effort at DVB.