Thunderclap vulnerabilities can also be exploited by compromised PCI Express peripherals, either plug-in cards or chips soldered to the motherboard.
Netboard adapter onboard processor windows#
Many laptops, and some desktops, designed to run Windows or Linux produced since 2016 are also affected - check whether your laptop supports Thunderbolt. In particular, all Apple laptops and desktops produced since 2011 are vulnerable, with the exception of the 12-inch MacBook. Machines with older versions of Thunderbolt (carried over a Mini DisplayPort connector) are also affected. Thunderbolt 3 is often supported via USB Type-C ports on modern laptops. Many modern laptops and an increasing number of desktops are susceptible. Thunderclap vulnerabilities affect computers with Thunderbolt ports running Windows, macOS, Linux, and FreeBSD. FAQ Who is affected by the Thunderclap vulnerabilities? The Thunderclap platform is open-source and available for researchers to build or extend: University of Cambridge Computer Laboratory technical report UCAM-CL-TR-934. More information about some of the experiments can be found in the following PhD thesis:Įxploitation from malicious PCI Express peripherals Colin Rothwell. Proceedings of the Network and Distributed Systems Security Symposium (NDSS), 24-27 February 2019, San Diego, USA. Theodore Markettos, Colin Rothwell, Brett F. Thunderclap: Exploring Vulnerabilities in Operating System IOMMU Protection via DMA from Untrustworthy Peripherals A.
The Thunderclap platform as well as a number of Thunderclap vulnerabilities and proof-of-concept attacks are described in: ( photos available under a Creative Commons Attribution license)
It was used to discover the Thunderclap vulnerabilities and develop proof-of-concept exploits. The Thunderclap platform is a hardware/software stack for research into the security of computer peripherals and their interaction with operating systems. Attacks exploiting these vulnerabilities can also be carried out by seemingly innocuous peripherals like chargers and projectors that correctly charge or project video but simultaneously compromise the host machine.
Netboard adapter onboard processor code#
These vulnerabilities allow an attacker with physical access to a Thunderbolt port to compromise a target machine in a matter of seconds, running arbitrary code at the highest privilege level and potentially gaining access to passwords, banking logins, encryption keys, private files, browsing and other data. The Thunderclap vulnerabilities are security flaws that affect the way modern computers interact with peripheral devices such as network cards, storage, and graphics cards. Technical details of the Thunderclap platform.
Modern computers are vulnerable to malicious peripheral devices Contents Modern computers are vulnerable to malicious peripheral devicesĬontact: theo.markettos cl.cam.ac.uk