Extensibility through XML

Introduction

XML is extensible by design. CycloneDX is a hardened schema, but it does allow for additional XML elements so long as they reside in a different namespace. This extensibility allows for representing more complex data structures in CycloneDX that would not otherwise be supported. One such extension commonly used is XML Signature, used for enveloped signing.

This example demonstrates extending the CycloneDX specification by incorporating the XML Digital Signature (ds) namespace. By leveraging a different namespace, additional functionality—such as signing the BOM for integrity and authenticity—is seamlessly integrated without altering the core CycloneDX schema.

Example

<bom xmlns="http://cyclonedx.org/schema/bom/1.7"
     serialNumber="urn:uuid:3e671687-395b-41f5-a30f-a58921a69b79"
     version="1">
    <components>
        ...
    </components>
    <ds:Signature xmlns:ds="http://www.w3.org/2000/09/xmldsig#">
        <ds:SignedInfo>
            <ds:CanonicalizationMethod Algorithm="http://www.w3.org/TR/2001/REC-xml-c14n-20010315"/>
            <ds:SignatureMethod Algorithm="http://www.w3.org/2000/09/xmldsig#rsa-sha1"/>
            <ds:Reference URI="">
                <ds:Transforms>
                    <ds:Transform Algorithm="http://www.w3.org/2000/09/xmldsig#enveloped-signature"/>
                </ds:Transforms>
                <ds:DigestMethod Algorithm="http://www.w3.org/2000/09/xmldsig#sha1"/>
                <ds:DigestValue>sZjV4XcMOuD6NA9bXEd2sGWQYE0=</ds:DigestValue>
            </ds:Reference>
        </ds:SignedInfo>
        <ds:SignatureValue>...</ds:SignatureValue>
        <ds:KeyInfo xmlns:ds="http://www.w3.org/2000/09/xmldsig#">
            <ds:X509Data>
                <ds:X509SubjectName>CN=bomsigner,OU=development,O=cyclonedx</ds:X509SubjectName>
                <ds:X509Certificate>...</ds:X509Certificate>
            </ds:X509Data>
            <ds:KeyValue>
                <ds:RSAKeyValue>
                    <ds:Modulus>...</ds:Modulus>
                    <ds:Exponent>AQAB</ds:Exponent>
                </ds:RSAKeyValue>
            </ds:KeyValue>
        </ds:KeyInfo>
    </ds:Signature>
</bom>

Authoritative Guide