Abstract

This paper describes an attack that exploits the online marketplace’s susceptibility to covert fraud, opaqueness of embedded software, and social engineering to hijack account access and ultimately steal money. The attacker introduces a fatal security flaw into a trusted embedded system (e.g. computer motherboard, network interface card, network router, cell phone), distributes it through the online marketplace at a plausible bargain, and then exploits the security flaw to steal information. Unlike conventional fraud, consumer risk far exceeds the price of the good. As proof of concept, the firmware on a wireless home router is replaced by an open source embedded operating system. Once installed, its DNS server is reconfigured to selectively spoof domain resolution. This instance of malicious embedded software is discussed in depth, including implementation details, attack extensions, and countermeasures. 1

Citations