Microchip Technology Inc. (Nasdaq: MCHP), a leading provider of microcontroller, mixed-signal, analog and Flash-IP solutions, today announced a family of microcontrollers (MCUs) with robust security features to protect both firmware and data against evolving security threats.

Microchip Technology Inc. today announced the launch of its PIC18-Q24 MCU family of products to help protect against current and anticipated security threats.

The PIC18-Q24 MCU introduces the Programming and Debugging Interface Disable (PDID) feature to counter the threat of malicious device reprogramming in embedded systems.

This enhanced code protection feature blocks access to the programming/debugging interface and prevents unauthorized attempts to read, modify, or delete the firmware.

“No matter how strong a system’s security is, it is only as secure as its weakest link,” said Greg Robinson, vice president of Microchip’s 8-bit MCU business unit. “Therefore, any programmable component can be vulnerable, so it is essential to implement enhanced protection features to prevent potential hacking,” he said. “Microchip’s PIC18-Q24 MCU family was designed with the highest level of security features as a top priority, helping customers address security threats at the system-level.”

Because many security systems often connect and communicate with a variety of sensors, memory chips, and processors, the PIC18-Q24 MCUs feature multi-voltage input/output (MVIO) capabilities.

This feature allows the MCU to interface with digital inputs and outputs at different operating voltages without the need for external level shifters.

Additionally, MVIO not only reduces board complexity and BOM (Bill of Materials) costs, but is also designed to make the PIC18-Q24 ideal for use as a system management processor, allowing it to perform monitoring and telemetry roles for larger processors.

These seemingly routine tasks are typically vulnerable to attack by potential hackers, especially when they are trying to access embedded systems.

Additionally, the PIC18-Q24 family offers the option to use an immutable bootloader for applications that want to safely upgrade firmware.

For more information, visit the Microchip PIC® MCU webpage.