eavesROP: Listening for ROP Payloads in Data Streams (preliminary full version)
(2014)- Abstract
- We consider the problem of detecting exploits based on return-oriented programming. In contrast to previous works we investigate to which extent we can detect ROP payloads by only analysing streaming data, i.e., we do not assume any modifications to the target machine, its kernel or its libraries. Neither do we attempt to execute any potentially malicious code in order to determine if it is an attack. While such a scenario has its limitations, we show that using a layered approach with a filtering mechanism together with the Fast Fourier Transform, it is possible to detect ROP payloads even in the presence of noise and assuming that the target system employs ASLR. Our approach, denoted eavesROP, thus provides a very lightweight and easily... (More)
- We consider the problem of detecting exploits based on return-oriented programming. In contrast to previous works we investigate to which extent we can detect ROP payloads by only analysing streaming data, i.e., we do not assume any modifications to the target machine, its kernel or its libraries. Neither do we attempt to execute any potentially malicious code in order to determine if it is an attack. While such a scenario has its limitations, we show that using a layered approach with a filtering mechanism together with the Fast Fourier Transform, it is possible to detect ROP payloads even in the presence of noise and assuming that the target system employs ASLR. Our approach, denoted eavesROP, thus provides a very lightweight and easily deployable mitigation against certain ROP attacks. It also provides the added merit of detecting the presence of a brute-force attack on ASLR since library base addresses are not assumed to be known by eavesROP. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/4586662
- author
- Jämthagen, Christopher
LU
; Karlsson, Linus
LU
; Stankovski, Paul LU
and Hell, Martin LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2014
- type
- Book/Report
- publication status
- unpublished
- subject
- keywords
- Return-Oriented Programming, ROP, Pattern Matching, ASLR
- publisher
- [Publisher information missing]
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- dbb301a9-b97e-44b9-b800-23a8f89e6c0f (old id 4586662)
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-04 14:15:26
- date last changed
- 2019-04-30 16:44:05
@techreport{dbb301a9-b97e-44b9-b800-23a8f89e6c0f, abstract = {{We consider the problem of detecting exploits based on return-oriented programming. In contrast to previous works we investigate to which extent we can detect ROP payloads by only analysing streaming data, i.e., we do not assume any modifications to the target machine, its kernel or its libraries. Neither do we attempt to execute any potentially malicious code in order to determine if it is an attack. While such a scenario has its limitations, we show that using a layered approach with a filtering mechanism together with the Fast Fourier Transform, it is possible to detect ROP payloads even in the presence of noise and assuming that the target system employs ASLR. Our approach, denoted eavesROP, thus provides a very lightweight and easily deployable mitigation against certain ROP attacks. It also provides the added merit of detecting the presence of a brute-force attack on ASLR since library base addresses are not assumed to be known by eavesROP.}}, author = {{Jämthagen, Christopher and Karlsson, Linus and Stankovski, Paul and Hell, Martin}}, institution = {{[Publisher information missing]}}, keywords = {{Return-Oriented Programming; ROP; Pattern Matching; ASLR}}, language = {{eng}}, title = {{eavesROP: Listening for ROP Payloads in Data Streams (preliminary full version)}}, url = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/6317746/4586665.pdf}}, year = {{2014}}, }