How chips can unintentionally reveal the software they are running.

What is it about?

Electronic devices such as microcontrollers and FPGAs can unintentionally reveal the software instructions they are running. This happens because the flow of electricity inside a chip changes depending on the instructions being executed. These changes can be measured through impedance, an electrical property of the device. By studying these fluctuations, it is possible to determine what the device is performing.

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Why is it important?

This discovery highlights a new security risk, as attackers could exploit it to access software or sensitive data. At the same time, it provides opportunities to use these measurements for system monitoring, debugging, and detecting malicious activity. The finding is especially timely because an increasing number of systems rely on embedded devices, making it important to understand potential sources of information leakage and ways to protect or monitor them.