Showing Articles About
kernel
- 15 Feb 2019
Ventures into Hyper-V - Fuzzing hypercalls
A technical investigation explored fuzzing Hyper-V hypercalls using a custom kernel driver called Virdian Fuzzer (VIFU). The research systematically tested both documented and undocumented hypercalls in Microsoft's virtualization platform. The project involved complex technical analysis of hypercall mechanisms, address translation, and potential vulnerabilities in the Hyper-V architecture.
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James Loureiro - 25 Sep 2017
Biting the Apple that feeds you - macOS Kernel Fuzzing
An automated kernel fuzzing framework was developed for the macOS XNU kernel using an in-memory fuzzer with static and dynamic analysis techniques. The framework targeted core subsystems to identify critical vulnerabilities in macOS. The approach aimed to address the limited existing automated kernel fuzzing solutions for the Apple platform.
- Mateusz Fruba
- 19 Sep 2017
Kernel Driver mmap Handler Exploitation
This whitepaper explores exploitation techniques for Linux kernel driver memory mapping vulnerabilities. The research addresses the lack of public documentation on identifying and exploiting security flaws in kernel driver development. The goal is to provide guidance for developers to understand and mitigate memory mapping issues in kernel drivers.
- 10 Mar 2017
A Window into Ring0
Sam Brown's presentation explores Windows kernel mode attack surfaces and vulnerabilities in modern systems. The talk covers techniques for finding bugs in kernel mode code and common exploitation methods for gaining system-level access. Brown discusses the increasing trend of attackers targeting kernel mode to bypass user account restrictions and sandboxing.
- 27 Jan 2017
A Tale Of Bitmaps: Leaking GDI Objects Post Windows 10 Anniversary Edition
A novel technique for leaking kernel bitmap object addresses in Windows post-Anniversary Edition is detailed. The method exploits memory reuse in the kernel's paged pool by leveraging accelerator tables and bitmap object allocation. This approach provides a way to retrieve kernel object addresses after previous information leak protections were implemented.
- Yong Chuan Koh
- 12 Oct 2016
Fuzzing the Windows kernel
A presentation by Yong Chuan Koh at HITB GSEC 2016 introduced a Python-based fuzzing framework for testing Windows kernel security. The framework is designed to be scalable and extensible for comprehensive kernel vulnerability detection. Presentation slides are available for download from the original source.
- Nils
- 12 Oct 2016
Windows Kernel Fuzzing
A distributed fuzzing technique was developed to target the Windows kernel and identify critical vulnerabilities. The approach focused on generating high-quality test cases to detect potential privilege escalation and sandbox breakout exploits. The fuzzing method scaled across hundreds of CPU cores to systematically assess the kernel's attack surface.
- James Loureiro Georgi Geshev
- 15 Aug 2016
Platform Agnostic Kernel Fuzzing
Platform agnostic kernel fuzzing research developed a method for systematically testing system and library calls across Windows and POSIX kernels. The approach focused on effectively logging crashes, reproducing vulnerabilities, and scaling fuzzing across multiple virtual machines. The research provided a framework for identifying kernel-level bugs through comprehensive and methodical testing.
- 5 Apr 2016
Windows Kernel Exploitation 101: Exploiting CVE-2014-4113
This article provides a detailed walkthrough of exploiting CVE-2014-4113, a Windows kernel vulnerability. The guide demonstrates the process of creating an exploit for Windows 7 SP1 32-bit by analyzing an original Anti-Virus vendor report. The goal is to make kernel exploitation more accessible to cybersecurity researchers.
- Alex Plaskett Georgi Geshev
- 16 Mar 2016
QNX: 99 Problems but a Microkernel ain't one!
This presentation explores security research on the QNX microkernel operating system used in critical systems like automotive and consumer devices. The talk examined QNX's security architecture through reverse engineering and fuzzing techniques. The goal was to provide insights into QNX subsystems and potential attack surfaces for privilege escalation.
- Alex Plaskett Georgi Geshev
- 16 Mar 2016
QNX: Security Architecture Whitepaper
A whitepaper by Alex Plaskett and Georgi Geshev examines the security architecture of QNX, a microkernel operating system. The document explores key operating system features and potential attack vectors against QNX-based platforms. The research identifies security weaknesses and suggests opportunities for further investigation into the QNX platform's security.
- 15 Aug 2014
Windows 8 Kernel Memory Protections Bypass
A technique for bypassing Windows 8 kernel memory protections like SMEP and DEP is demonstrated by manipulating paging structures. The method allows modification of memory page flags to enable user-mode code execution in kernel-mode. By targeting isolated paging structures, an attacker can corrupt page table entries to circumvent kernel memory safeguards on 64-bit Windows systems.
- Nils Jon Butler
- 6 Sep 2013
MWR Labs Pwn2Own 2013 Write-up - Kernel Exploit
A kernel pool overflow vulnerability in Windows 7's Win32k system was demonstrated at Pwn2Own 2013. The exploit involved manipulating message buffer allocations to corrupt kernel memory structures. By carefully controlling message handling and window object properties, kernel-mode code execution was achieved, enabling a sandbox escape in Google Chrome.
- 2 Sep 2010
Assessing the Tux Strength: Part 2 - Into the Kernel
This article examines Linux kernel security features across different distributions. It analyzes memory protection mechanisms and randomization techniques using tools like paxtest. The research reveals varying levels of kernel-level security settings, with most distributions showing vulnerabilities to certain exploitation techniques. Gentoo with a PaX kernel demonstrated the most robust security settings.