StackSpecter: Detecting Stack Buffer Overflows for the Xtensa Architecture

This paper presents a new approach, StackSpecter, for stack buffer overflow detection, specifically for architectures with register windows. It uses a combination of plausibility checks for stack pointers and obfuscation using a secret XOR key. This combination allows it to give similar security gua...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Australasian Telecommunication Networks and Applications Conference [proceedings] pp. 1 - 7
Main Authors: Lehniger, Kai, Langendorfer, Peter
Format: Conference Proceeding
Language:English
Published: IEEE 27.11.2024
Subjects:
buffer overflow
Buffer overflows
Communications technology
ESP32
Layout
Microcontrollers
Operating systems
Real-time systems
register windows
Registers
Security
Xtensa
ISSN:2474-154X
Online Access:Get full text
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Description
Summary:This paper presents a new approach, StackSpecter, for stack buffer overflow detection, specifically for architectures with register windows. It uses a combination of plausibility checks for stack pointers and obfuscation using a secret XOR key. This combination allows it to give similar security guar-antees as stack canaries but without the need of adjustments to the stack frame layout. StackSpecter was implemented by modifying the FreeRTOS operating system of a ESP32 microcontroller. The performance overhead was evaluated using BEEBS, showing an average overhead of only 0.114%, a large improvement compared to stack canaries, and a worst-case overhead of 64.854% compared to an unprotected application.
ISSN:2474-154X
DOI:10.1109/ITNAC62915.2024.10815333