DEF CON 24 - Bertin Bervis and James Jara - exploiting and attacking seismological networks remotely
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The document discusses vulnerabilities found in seismological network devices that could allow remote exploitation. It begins with a disclaimer and agenda. The speakers are then introduced as researchers from Costa Rica who were interested in these networks due to potential attack scenarios. Through a search engine, they discovered vulnerabilities in devices from multiple vendors. The talk demonstrates taking control of a device and outlines impacts such as sabotage. Recommendations are made to vendors to improve security of these critical scientific instruments.
DEF CON 24 - Bertin Bervis and James Jara - exploiting and attacking seismological networks remotely
- 1. Exploiting and attacking seismological networks .. Remotely Bertin B – James jara NetDB Search Engine DEFCON 24 Las Vegas, Nevada
- 2. Disclaimer - This is not a typical talk -Probably it is the first research of this kind -All vulnerabilities have been reported to U.S CERT -We are not responsible of the actions that someone can take after attend this talk -Peace on earth
- 3. Agenda -Who we are -Motivation -How we discovered this devices? -Risk /Impact , who is affected by attacking this devices ? -Seismological instrumentation -Internals /Deployment/Networking -Vulnerabilities /firmware analysis -Attack vectors / post exploitation -Recommendations/conclusions
- 4. Bertin Bervis NetDB Co-founder @bertinjoseb James Jara NetDB Co-founder @jamesjara
- 5. We are from San Jose Costa Rica
- 6. Motivation Why we are interested in seismological networks? An average attacker is not interested for this attacks Governments are interested.. you know.. …..!@#$% WAR Cool and new attack scenario ¨extreme environment¨ You are playing with devices that measure natural disasters Could lead to a financial sabotage to a specific company/country The vendors of this instruments doesn’t have any sense of computer security Remote access, remote exploitation Ok let’s continue this project…
- 7. How we discovered this devices? DEMO
- 8. Fingerprints too many fingerprints
- 9. For some strange reason you find a unique fingerprint in millions… DEMO
- 10. So.. WTF is TAURUS ???? Let´s connect to that shit NOW!
- 13. Seismometers are instruments that measure motion of the ground, including those of seismic waves generated by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and other seismic sources. Records of seismic waves allow seismologists to map the interior of the Earth, and locate and measure the size of these different sources. Wikipedia Common aplications: -Earthquake detection -Geophysics, geothermal development -Structural analysis -Mine safety -Fracking / Drilling
- 17. GPS REAL DATA LOCATION DEMO Ocean bottom seismograph
- 18. Impact -No one else has ever done a research about security of this devices or networks before -Remote Denial of service -Remote management -Several Bugs -Sabotage seismological country’s network -Economic impact for Oil and Gas research for specific company -Drug trafficking submarine detection -Military -Unknow
- 19. This increased understanding can lead to improved oil and gas recovery.
- 20. Vendors found
- 24. Internals Linux based OS Remote management SSH TELNET FTP Web Server GPS Ocean bottom Battery /Solar panels
- 25. Sophisticated
- 27. Deployment options The Taurus may be deployed as either a stand-alone data recorder or as a network component. For stand-alone recording where network access is not required, typically you would configure the Taurus to run in Buffered mode. It consumes less power in this mode as the Controller only runs when the Taurus is recording buffered data to the Store. For networked operation you must configure the Taurus to run in Communications mode and configure the appropriate network options. In this mode, the Controller is running continuously. It consumes more power than Buffered mode but allows continuous access via an IP connection. You can stream time-series data from a Taurus to a central acquisition server, for example to write the data to NAQS ringbuffers. To stream Taurus data to NAQS, the NpToNmxp utility must be running on the NAQS server • Stream NP Packets – Set Taurus to stream data to the specified destination; enabled , not enabled . Factory default is not enabled. • IP Address – The address of the streaming destination (for example, a NAQS server); a valid IP address in dotted decimal format Applications software Nanometrics Apollo acquisition server with web interface
- 28. Geophysicists depend on seismometers to monitor earthquakes generated by the motion of the tectonic plates that form the Earth’s crust. In order to function, the instruments need to be leveled prior to operation. That’s easy enough for a device deployed on dry land, but when it comes to seismometers placed on the ocean floor thousands of feet below the surface, the process gets a bit more challenging. To solve it, Nanometrics Inc. (Kanata, Ontario) combines sophisticated gimbals and microprocessors, along with ultra- reliable, efficient motors from MICROMO (Clearwater, FL).
- 31. Ocean Bottom seismic network - Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs)
- 32. Athena: Event Cataloging and Notification Management
- 33. Challenge: In order to function, the instruments need to be leveled prior to operation. Not easy when it is thousands feet on the ocean floor. Solution: To solve it, Nanometrics Inc. (Kanata, Ontario) combines sophisticated gimbals and microprocessors, along with ultra-reliable, efficient motors from MICROMO (Clearwater, FL) Results: A Trillium 240 was deployed at the South Pole and it operated perfectly. The turn- on temperature was -58°C (-136°F). The system temperature settled eventually to -50° C (- 122°F) and stayed there for a long period of time. The motors turned on and did exactly what they were supposed to do
- 34. OCEAN BOTTOM DEPLOYMENT VIDEO DEMO To deploy the Trillium OBS (black cylinder), users attach the seismometer to a metal sled that carries it down to the sea floor. At the end of the experiment, the transponder signal triggers the release of ballast and the instrument floats to the surface. (Courtesy of Nanometrics Inc.
- 35. Inside the Solution Seismometers capture transient phenomenon. If an instrument malfunctions, whether it’s at the bottom of the ocean or atop a polar ice cap, that data is lost forever.“You need to be absolutely sure the sensor will perform perfectly every time,” says Jeff Potter, director of marketing at Nanometrics. “Seismometers also need to be small and consume very little power when they level themselves, and that’s where MICROMO has helped.” The leveling mechanism integrates the following devices: The AM1020-V-6-65, a in a 10-mm-diameter, two- phase stepper motor that provides a peak torque of 1.6 mNm. With 20 steps per revolution, and PRECIstep technology, the motor offers reliable, accurate motion, even in harsh environments. A 10/1 planetary gearbox provides a 256:1 reduction ratio in a 10-mm- diameter package.
- 36. Vulnerability research -We want a shell in that thing -The firmware was not easy to find in the internet -This equipment is very expensive -Not everyone can buy these things directly to the vendor, you need to be an organization/academics . -Let tell you the story about how i was be able to get the firmware …..
- 37. FUCK YEAH!!!!!!
- 38. WTF?
- 39. BUSTED…but too late for them
- 40. Too much talk!! root@root DEMO TIME
- 41. dolphin18
- 42. There is backdoor, factory user is not in official documentation.
- 43. Test some vulnerabilities.. You know.. PWD !! Shellshock
- 44. Bugs and errors everywhere
- 45. GURALP Systems are easy to find looking in the SSL certificate metadata in NetDB
- 46. Ok , now we are root so .. What’s next ? PROTOCOL / COMMUNICATIONS The Standard for the Exchange of Earthquake Data (SEED) is a data format intended primarily for the archival and exchange of seismological time series data and related metadata. The format is maintained by the International Federation of Digital Seismograph Networks and documented in the SEED Manual (PDF format). Originally designed in the late 1980s, the format has been enhanced and refined a number of times and remains in widespread use.
- 47. Data identification nomenclature The SEED format uses 4 name components to uniquely identify a time series and provide attribution to the owner of the data: Network code: a 1 or 2 character code identifying the network/owner of the data. These codes are assigned by the FDSN to provide uniqueness to seismological data, new codes may be requested. Station code: a 1 to 5 character identifier for the station recording the data. Location ID: a 2 character code used to uniquely identify different data streams at a single station. These IDs are commonly used to logically separate multiple instruments or sensor sets at a single station. Channel codes: a 3 character combination used to identify the 1) band and general sample rate 2) the instrument type and 3) the orientation of the sensor. A convention for these codes has been established and is documented in Appendix A of the SEED Manual. What if……
- 49. Guralp systems SCREAM protocol for transmitting seismic data over the internet
- 53. Conclusions -We are be able to locate this devices anywhere in the world -We are in control of the device , the network and the software running on it. -There is no SSL in communications -This devices help engineers to save people and understand the earth -Vendors please… code better and think in security
- 54. Recommendations
- 55. THANKS SEE YOU NEXT TIME !!