 | Parts of this article (those related to status and content of IEEE 1619.2 (published in 2010)) need to be updated.(March 2024) |
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) standardization project for encryption of stored data, but more generically refers to the Security in Storage Working Group (SISWG), which includes a family of standards for protection of stored data and for the corresponding cryptographic key management.
SISWG oversees work on the following block encryption standards:
IEEE Std 1619-2025 (Standard for Cryptographic Protection of Data on Block-Oriented Storage Devices) uses the XTS-Advanced Encryption Standard (XEX-based Tweakable Cipher Mode with ciphertext stealing) [1] . Examples of its use include self-encrypting storage devices, such as hard disk drives (HDDs) and solid-state drives (SSDs).
(The original version of 1619 (2007) standardized key backup in the XML format, but that was removed in the 2013 version.)
IEEE Std 1619.1-2018 (Standard for Authenticated Encryption with Length Expansion for Storage Devices) defines the following algorithms:
IEEE Std 1619.2-2025 (Standard for Wide-Block Encryption for Shared Storage Media) defines one algorithm:
(The XCB-AES mode had been defined in earlier versions of 1619.2, but XCB (Extended Code Book) was reported broken and was removed from the 2025 version of 1619.2.)
An encryption algorithm used for data storage has to support independent encryption and decryption of portions of data. So-called narrow-block algorithms operate on relatively small portions of data, while the wide-block algorithms encrypt or decrypt a whole sector. Narrow-block algorithms have the advantage of more efficient hardware implementation. On the other hand, smaller block size provides finer granularity for data modification attacks. There is no standardized "acceptable granularity"; however, for example, the possibility of data modification with the granularity of one bit (bit-flipping attack) is generally considered unacceptable.
For these reasons, the working group selected the narrow-block (128 bits) encryption with no authentication in the standard P1619, assuming that the added efficiency warrants the additional risk. But recognizing that wide-block encryption might be useful in some cases, another standard, 1619.2, was developed to define an algorithm for the usage of wide-block encryption.
SISWG oversees development of a family of standards on sanitization of storage:
IEEE Std 2883-2022 (Standard for Sanitizing Storage} specifies methods of sanitizing logical storage and physical storage as well as providing technology-specific requirements and guidance for the elimination of recorded data. Requirements for implementing techniques defined in 2883 will be defined in P3406 (see below).
Other standards refer to 2883 for specific requirements in performing sanitization. Examples include NIST SP 800-88r2 (Guidelines for Media Sanitization) and ISO/IEC 27040:2024 (Storage Security).
IEEE Std 2883.1-2025 (Recommended Practice for Use of Storage Sanitization Methods) provides recommendations to entities in making choices in the application of the sanitization methods defined in 2883. Recommendations consider risk, feasibility, effectiveness, economics, and environmental consequences.
Project P2883.2 (Recommended Practice for Virtualized and Cloud Storage Sanitization) is under development to provide recommendations to organizations in applying sanitization methods defined in 2883 to virtualized and cloud storage systems. Recommendations primarily focus on mitigation of risk within constraints posed by feasibility, effectiveness, economics, and environmental consequences.
Project P3406 (Standard for Purge and Destruct Sanitization Framework) will provide requirements for defining techniques that perform the Purge method and for defining techniques that perform the Destruct method. The Purge and Destruct methods are defined in IEEE 2883.
IEEE Std 1617-2018 (Standard for Discovery, Authentication, and Authorization in Host Attachments of Storage Devices) defines discovery, authentication, and authorization protocols between hosts and storage devices over multiple transports.
As of 2025, project P1617 is under development to update 1617.
