Reverse-Engineering the Supra iBox - Exploitation of a Hardened MSP430-Based Device

Explore reverse engineering and exploitation techniques for hardened embedded devices through a detailed examination of the Supra iBox BT, a bluetooth and IR-based physical key storage device used by real estate professionals. Delve into the challenges of extracting firmware from an MSP430 microcontroller with a blown JTAG fuse, and learn about various attack methods, including voltage glitching and timing attacks. Discover the complex crypto key management scheme employed by Supra and understand how it handles synchronization without direct internet access. Gain insights into the internals of the iBox firmware, including an exploit demonstration that can open any iBox. Examine the physical access required, board layout, and internal components of the device. Follow the step-by-step reverse-engineering process, from initial analysis to successful firmware extraction. Investigate the Bootstrap Loader (BSL) overview, existing attacks, and their limitations. Learn about MSP430 JTAG security measures and the "Paparazzi" attack. Uncover findings from firmware reversing, including the IrDA protocol implementation and Supra's crypto architecture. Explore various authentication modes, brute force attempts, and potential hardware backdoors. Conclude with an analysis of flash write/erase attacks and discuss potential solutions for improving embedded device security.