Weakness · High
CWE-1192: Improper Identifier for IP Block used in System-On-Chip (SOC)
What it is
The System-on-Chip (SoC) does not have unique, immutable identifiers for each of its components.
- Severity (our rating)
- High
- Likelihood of exploit
- Not rated by MITRE
- Introduced during
- Architecture and Design, Implementation, Operation
- Exploited in the wild
- No CVE in CISA's catalog
In more detail
A System-on-Chip (SoC) comprises several components (IP) with varied trust requirements. It is required that each IP is identified uniquely and should distinguish itself from other entities in the SoC without any ambiguity. The unique secured identity is required for various purposes. Most of the time the identity is used to route a transaction or perform certain actions, including resetting, retrieving a sensitive information, and acting upon or on behalf of something else. There are several variants of this weakness: A "missing" identifier is when the SoC does not define any mechanism to uniquely identify the IP. An "insufficient" identifier might provide some defenses - for example, against the most common attacks - but it does not protect against everything that is intended. A "misconfigured" mechanism occurs when a mechanism is available but not implemented correctly. An "ignored" identifier occurs when the SoC/IP has not applied any policies or does not act upon the identifier securely.
What an attacker can do
- Bypass Protection Mechanism (Access Control)
How to prevent it
Architecture and Design
- Every identity generated in the SoC should be unique and immutable in hardware. The actions that an IP is trusted or not trusted should be clearly defined, implemented, configured, and tested. If the definition is implemented via a policy, then the policy should be immutable or protected with clear authentication and authorization.
H2 Security
Found it in your code?
We review where it appears, fix it with your team, and check it was not already used against you.
Talk to our teamT Academy
Stop writing it in the first place
Learn to build software and systems without weaknesses like this one, with practice on real hosts in your browser, every objective checked on the machine.
Start freeSource: MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration, CWE version 4.19.1. CWE is a trademark of The MITRE Corporation.