HAL - The Open-Source Hardware Analyzer

Explore the foundations of hardware reverse engineering and the netlist analysis framework HAL in this conference talk from the 36th Chaos Communication Congress. Dive into the complexities of detecting hardware manipulations and hidden backdoors, and learn about the challenges faced in hardware reverse engineering compared to software reverse engineering. Discover how HAL, the first open-source netlist analysis framework, aims to close the gap in hardware analysis tools. Gain insights into the two-phase process of hardware reverse engineering, including netlist extraction and functionality analysis. Examine the capabilities of HAL through live demonstrations and case studies, and get a glimpse of ongoing research in the field. Suitable for those with minimal prior knowledge of digital hardware, this talk provides a comprehensive overview of hardware reverse engineering techniques and tools.