Connected devices make up one of the largest attack surfaces on the modern Internet. Billions of devices, many with little to no consideration given to their secure operation, controlling everything from sewage treatment systems to safety-critical vehicle functions. As a result, security research on the low-level firmware that control these devices has become more important than ever. But how is a researcher to get access to closed-source firmware for proprietary hardware to begin with? One method that we have been using for some ongoing research is intercepting firmware from updater apps that use Bluetooth to perform over-the-air updates.

Connected devices make up one of the largest attack surfaces on the modern Internet. Billions of devices, many with little to no consideration given to their secure operation, controlling everything from sewage treatment systems to safety-critical vehicle functions. As a result, security research on the low-level firmware that control these devices has become more important than ever. But how is a researcher to get access to closed-source firmware for proprietary hardware to begin with? One method that we have been using for some ongoing research is intercepting firmware from updater apps that use Bluetooth to perform over-the-air updates.

Source: SecurityInnovation
Source Link: https://blog.securityinnovation.com/stealing-firmware-from-over-the-air-updates