US Patent 10228415 Apparatus and method for security in an integrated circuit

Test circuitry for providing security in an integrated circuit includes a control circuit and a test power-on-reset circuit. The control circuit determines whether the integrated circuit is configured in a non-secure condition, and that generates a control signal in response to the non-secure condition. Accordingly, the test power-on-reset circuit selectively disables a power-on-reset circuit on the integrated circuit in response the control signal during test operations. The test power-on-reset circuit receives control instructions from the control circuit, and produces a test power-on-reset output according to the control instructions. The integrated circuit includes a logic gate that receives the test power-on-reset output and a power-on-reset signal from the power-on-reset circuit and generates an output signal for bypassing operations of the power-on-reset circuit on the integrated circuit.