NSA Playset: PCIe Hardware Implants

Architecture and Background

NSA Playset: PCIe Joe FitzPatrick HARDWARE SECURITY RESOURCES, LLC Miles Crabill SECURITY RESEARCHER Hardware hacks tend to focus on low-speed (jtag, uart) and external (network, usb) interfaces, and PCI Express is typically neither. After a crash course in PCIe Architecture, we'll demonstrate a handful of hacks showing how pull PCIe outside of your system case and add PCIe slots to systems without them, including embedded platforms.

Vulnerability Analysis

We'll top it off with a demonstration of SLOTSCREAMER, an inexpensive device we've configured to access memory and IO, cross-platform and transparent to the OS - all by design with no 0-day needed. The open hardware and software framework that we will release will expand your NSA Playset with the ability to tinker with DMA attacks to read memory, bypass software and hardware security measures, and directly attack other hardware devices in the system.

Exploitation and Demonstrations

Anyone who has installed a graphics card has all the hardware experience necessary to enjoy this talk and start playing NSA at home! Joe is an Instructor, Consultant, and Researcher at SecuringHardware.com.

Remediation and Defensive Strategies

Joe specializes in low-cost attacks, hardware tools, and hardware design for security. Previously, he spent 8 years doing test/debug and hardware pen-testing of desktop and server microprocessors, as well as conducting security validation training for hardware validators worldwide. In addition to side projects on PCIe, RTL security validation, and simple side channel attacks, Joe currently teaches “Secure Hardware Development for Integrated Circuits” and Co-teaches “Software Exploitation via Hardware Exploits” alongside Stephen Ridley. Twitter: @securelyfitz Miles Crabill is a rising junior at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, OR. He is interested in computer security education and is a contributor to EDURange, an NSF funded framework for deploying computer security scenarios.