34C3 - Console Security - Switch
media.ccc.deCited 4× on HN, 2018–2023
talk · advanced · 2018–2023 on HN
A 34C3 talk on the security architecture of the Nintendo Switch and the early progress breaking it. It introduces the Switch's custom OS and software stack, with the hackers' reverse-engineering and glitching work.
Used as a reference for how the Switch was actually broken, including the Tegra debug backdoor, and for facts about its non-FreeBSD kernel.
Up next
11 mo on HNBehind the Scenes of iOS Security
Black Hat
9 HN recommender · 2016–2026
11 mo on HNWhy Electronic Voting Is Still A Bad Idea
Tom Scott
11 HN recommender · 2020–2026
10 mo on HNUSENIX Security '18-Q: Why Do Keynote Speakers Keep Suggesting That Improving Security Is Possible?
USENIX
10 HN recommender · 2018–2026
10 mo on HNDefcon 18 Changing threats to privacy Moxie Marlinspike Part
killab66661
6 HN recommender · 2012–2019
9 mo on HN28c3: The Science of Insecurity
28c3
9 HN recommender · 2012–2024
8 mo on HNDEF CON 25 - John Sotos - Genetic Diseases to Guide Digital Hacks of the Human Genome
DEFCONConference
11 HN recommender · 2017–2023
7 mo on HNElevator Hacking: From the Pit to the Penthouse
DeviantOllam
9 HN recommender · 2014–2026
7 mo on HNCompiling C to printable x86, to make an executable research paper
suckerpinch
8 HN recommender · 2018–2023
7 mo on HNBreak Me00 The MoVfuscator Turning mov into a soul crushing RE nightmare Christopher Domas
Adrian Crenshaw
6 HN recommender · 2017–2026
7 mo on HNBlackHat USA 2011: SSL And The Future Of Authenticity
Christiaan008
9 HN recommender · 2011–2017
7 mo on HN27C3: Adventures in analyzing Stuxnet (Bruce Dang from Microsoft)
basti0007
8 HN recommender · 2011–2024
7 mo on HNFrank Abagnale | Catch Me If You Can | Talks at Google
Talks at Google
8 HN recommender · 2018–2023
4 comments from Hacker News
The switch kernel / Horizon/NX is not based on FreeBSD. This has been debunked over and over. The wikipedia list is not correct in that regard. It is see e.g. ▶ this video link link
My personal favorite is the This Week In[0] series of posts, if you want a simple way to keep track of notable changes. Technical blogposts are a pretty common practice among reverse-engineers, too; the Dolphin emulator has some great breakdowns[1], along with the people who reverse-engineered the Nintendo Switch's boot process[2] (and the rest of LiveOverflow's stuff). The Asahi writeups are great, but certainly not all there is. Tons of reverse-engineering stuff and Linux documentation gets submit to this website, it just doesn't generally do as well in the ranking system. [0] link [0] link [1] link [2] ▶ this video
If you’ve gone to a pop culture convention in the past few years you will also see reproduction cartridges (repro carts). The first one I saw was a legend of zelda ocarina of time master quest N64 cart, but there are new NES and SNES games that are being written from scratch and sold on repro carts. This wasn’t possible for N64 titles until relatively recently[1]. Interestingly, the method of cracking N64’s boot security sounds rather standard when compared to the 3DS and switch glitching[2][3]. 1. link 2. link 3. ▶ this video
It's an almost stock Tegra X1 reference system. The hacks that got access to the system recently started with a Tegra backdoor/debug option Nvidia and Nintendo apparently forgot about. ▶ this video