Hardware Reverse Engineering (HRE) is a technique for analyzing Integrated Circuits (ICs). Experts employ HRE for security-critical tasks, such as detecting Trojans or intellectual property violations. They rely not only on their experience and customized tools but also on their cognitive abilities. Conducting controlled experiments to assess the cognitive processes involved in HRE can open new avenues for hardware protection. However, HRE experts are largely unavailable for empirical research in real-world settings. To address this challenge, we have developed REVERSIM, a game-based environment that mimics realistic HRE subprocesses and can integrate standardized cognitive tests. REVERSIM enables quantitative studies with easier-to-recruit non-experts to uncover cognitive factors relevant to HRE, which can subsequently be validated with small expert samples. To evaluate the design of REVERSIM, the minimum requirements for successful participation, and its measurement capabilities, we conducted two studies: First, we performed semi-structured interviews with 14 professionals and researchers from the HRE domain, who attested to the comparability of REVERSIM to real-world HRE problems. Second, we conducted an online user study with 109 participants, demonstrating that they could engage in REVERSIM with low domain-specific prior knowledge. We provide refined screening criteria, derive fine-grained performance metrics, and successfully perform a cognitive test for mental speed in REVERSIM, thus contributing an important piece of the puzzle for the development of innovative hardware protection mechanisms.

翻译：硬件逆向工程（HRE）是分析集成电路（IC）的一种技术。专家们利用HRE执行安全关键任务，例如检测木马或知识产权侵权行为。他们不仅依赖自身经验和定制化工具，还依赖于认知能力。开展受控实验以评估HRE涉及的认知过程，可为硬件保护开辟新途径。然而，在现实环境中，HRE专家通常难以参与实证研究。为解决这一挑战，我们开发了REVERSIM——一个基于游戏的环境，该环境可模拟真实的HRE子过程并能整合标准化认知测试。REVERSIM使得通过招募更易获取的非专家进行定量研究成为可能，以揭示与HRE相关的认知因素，这些因素随后可通过少量专家样本进行验证。为评估REVERSIM的设计、成功参与所需的最低要求及其测量能力，我们开展了两项研究：首先，对14名来自HRE领域的专业人士和研究者进行了半结构化访谈，他们证实了REVERSIM与现实HRE问题的可比性。其次，我们开展了一项包含109名参与者的在线用户研究，表明参与者可在较低领域先验知识下投入REVERSIM。我们提供了精细化的筛选标准，推导出细粒度性能指标，并成功在REVERSIM中完成了心理速度的认知测试，从而为开发创新性硬件保护机制贡献了关键一环。