QNX: 99 Problems but a Microkernel ain't one!

Presented at TROOPERS16 (2016), March 16, 2016, 1:30 p.m. (Unknown duration).

Cars, Turbines, Safety Critical Systems and consumer devices (phones) all run QNX, however, very little security research has been performed in this area. This talk will provide an overview of QNX security architecture with Blackberry 10 used as the primary target. We will discuss research on a locked down highly secured OS, the OS attack surface and our method for identifying weaknesses within the QNX OS. We will cover our methods of identifying vulnerabilities from both a reverse engineering perspective and automated fuzzing. This talk will provide a good overview of how the subsystems on QNX communication and how an attacker would attempt to elevate their privileges. We will also talk about some of the weaknesses identified with this on-going research and the challenges faced with exploit development on the platform.

The whitepaper can be found at: https://labs.mwrinfosecurity.com/assets/BlogFiles/mwri-qnx-security-whitepaper-2016-03-14.pdf


Presenters:

  • Georgi Geshev
    Georgi is a security researcher for MWR InfoSecurity in the UK. Born in the Eastern Bloc, a true wannabe Aussie now, he appreciates roo steaks and golden ales. His main areas of interest include bug hunting, reverse engineering and network protocols. It is a well-known fact that Georgi only knows about MQ technology. Previous Published Papers: Warranty Void If Label Removed - Attacking MPLS Networks (slides not currently on-line). Your Q is My Q - Message Queue Vulnerabilities http://www.nosuchcon.org/talks/2014/D1_02_Georgi_Geshev_Your_Q_is_my_Q.pdf
  • Alex Plaskett
    Alex is currently Head of Technical Research at MWR InfoSecurity in the UK. Alex is best known for Windows Phone security and identifying a large number of OEM introduced weaknesses on the platform. Alex has previously presented at Deepsec, BlueHat, T2.Fi, 44con, and SyScan. Previous Published Papers: Syscan April 2014 - Navigating a Sea of Pwn? https://labs.mwrinfosecurity.com/system/assets/650/original/mwri_wp8_appsec-slides-syscan_2014-03-30.pdf https://labs.mwrinfosecurity.com/system/assets/651/original/mwri_wp8_appsec-whitepaper-syscan_2014-03-30.pdf Qualcomm Security Summit April 2014 - Navigating a Sea of Pwn? https://labs.mwrinfosecurity.com/system/assets/650/original/mwri_wp8_appsec-slides-syscan_2014-03-30.pdf T2 October 2011 - Windows Pwn 7 - Owned Every Mobile? https://labs.mwrinfosecurity.com/system/assets/128/original/mwri_wp7-bluehat-technical_2011-11-08.pdf 44Con September 2011 - Windows Pwn 7 - Owned Every Mobile? * https://labs.mwrinfosecurity.com/system/assets/128/original/mwri_wp7-bluehat-technical_2011-11-08.pdf Microsoft Bluehat v11 and Exec Briefings November 2011 - https://labs.mwrinfosecurity.com/system/assets/127/original/mwri_wp7-bluehat-exec_2011-11-08.pdf

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