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Test attack exposes Intel SGX security vulnerabilities
2 min. read
Updated onOctober 4, 2023
updated onOctober 4, 2023
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Key notes
A recently publishedproof of conceptexposes security weaknesses inIntelSGX or Software Guard Extensions. The report comes amid the growing sophistication of cyber threats, which has demonstrated that software-basedantimalwaretools alone are inadequate.
As such, tech companies like Microsoft are advocating forhardware-backedreinforcements to traditional software protections.
Intel SGX chips fail SGAxe test attack
Cybersecurity researchers successfully breachedIntelSGX enclaves.
They demonstrated that it’s possible to access data protected within the enclaves by bypassing all the countermeasuresIntelhas in place.
We then proceed to show an extraction of SGX private attestation keys from within SGX’s quoting enclave, as compiled and signed byIntel. With these keys in hand, we are able to sign fake attestation quotes, just as if these have initiated from trusted and genuine SGX enclaves.
In the test attack, the researchers were able to steal protected data, which should be difficult when it comes toIntelSGX. Essentially, the technology allows developers to partition confidential information in hardware-secured enclaves.
The experiment proved that code executed at higher privilege levels can breach the SGX ecosystem.
SGAxe is a transformed version of CacheOut, which is also a security vulnerability in certainIntelmicrochips.
Intelhas published thefull listof vulnerable processors.
While there’s no evidence of any SGAxe exploit in the wild, hackers can still draw inspiration from the available proof of concept to get started. So, hopefully,Intelwill release micro-updates to patch the affected chips soon enough.
10th GenerationIntelCore processors are not in the list of affected chips, though. That should be good news, considering that one of their key selling points is their best-in-class built-insecurity.
Do you think hardware-backed PC security, such asIntelSGX enclaves, is the way to go? You can always share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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More about the topics:Cybersecurity,intel
Don Sharpe
Tech Journalist
Don has been writing professionally for over 10 years now, but his passion for the written word started back in his elementary school days. His work has been published on Livebitcoinnews.com, Learnbonds.com, eHow, AskMen.com, Forexminute.com, The Writers Network and a host of other companies.
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Don Sharpe
Tech Journalist
Don has been writing professionally for over 10 years now, simplifying the tech universe for the mases.
