Questions tagged [boot]
"Booting" is the process of starting up a computer from the OFF state. This tag is for attacks and security measures relating to the startup routine of computer hardware, firmware, or operating systems.
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How to crack luks crypto 2, encryption? [closed]
I recently forgot my phrase to unlock my laptop which i bought a new one several month's ago i needed some document then suddenly i can't remember the password, can anyone help!!!
Note: I tried ...
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System encryption on a uefi system?
I was thinking about encrypting my ssd(just out of curiosity, mostly) and was wondering the possible security threats an unencrypted /boot partition can pose(if any).
I know that I can encrypt the ...
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Are there any Linux distributions with enabled TPM2 and full disk encryption setups
I have been searching the web to find a Linux distribution, preferrably a rolling release one as I'm otherwise hooked on the concepts in Arch Linux, with automated steps to setup full disk encryption (...
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How to encrypt with LUKS a live Ubuntu usb stick that has been customized with Cubic? [migrated]
I'm using Cubic (https://github.com/PJ-Singh-001/Cubic) to create a custom Ubuntu. So far so good, everything is going smoothly.
However, I would like to encrypt the USB stick that contains my custom ...
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In a secure boot bootloader chain, does a bootloader image contain the RootCA certificate of the next bootloader?
This is coming from Qualcomm's Secure Boot explanation.
https://www.qualcomm.com/content/dam/qcomm-martech/dm-assets/documents/secure-boot-image-authentication_11.30.16.pdf
Within it, it explains that ...
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Using a TPM for host authentication during PXE boot
I have a stateless machine that is PXE booting from some host, and I'm curious if there is some clever way to achieve host authentication by only using the TMP (No UEFI Secure Boot).
For obvious ...
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Is TPM ownership required for secure boot or measured boot?
I know:
Secure Boot - can use the TPM
Measured Boot - must use the TPM
Can anyone intimately familiar with these processes explain if any TPM owner-authorized commands are required or used in these ...
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Does rebooting a phone daily increase your phone's security?
Recently, the Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese gave some advice to regularly reboot your phone to boost its security.
Apparently this advice is somewhat commonly given to legislators. This ...
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Will using a hard drive with the MBR virus cause the main system to be infected?
If I have an old hard drive and assume it has an MBR virus.
If I install it on my computer using a SATA cable as the D drive to store data, will my system drive (C drive) be affected by the MBR virus?
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If I disable CSM (Compatibility Support Module) in UEFI settings, will it protect me from malware that infected MBR boot sector?
As far as I understand, when in CSM mode, UEFI boots using MBR boot sector (from internal hard drive, external USB Flash drive, etc). And when in non-CSM mode, UEFI ignores whole existence of MBR boot ...
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Understanding FDE: Is the encrypted Linux protected against a compromised boot volume?
I use this initramfs-based FDE on my headless server. My motivation is to secure my system against physical tampering.
I am aware that securing an untrusted hardware is not possible. This question is ...
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What program can Decrypt specific a Folder/Files during Windows Boot/Loading? (Windows)
I've been looking into Encryption of my data for some time now; I've decided to move ahead with VeraCrypt for encryption all of my partitions (I have 2 disks in 1 laptop) except for the OS (C:) ...
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How are TPMs provisioned for Intel Trusted Execution Environment (TXT)?
For Intel TXT to work, the TPM must be provisioned. Intel provides some tools for doing this but many are protected by non-public login or an NDA. Many OEM platform vendors provision their boards and ...
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Boot virus on GPT?
I remember that some rare viruses can hide in MBR(it's 512bytes space).
It's difficult to be detected and even if I reinstall operating system, the virus won't disappear.
But how about it on the new ...
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Requiring hardware key at boot-up on normal laptop
I am sure that a question like this already exists and has probably been answered. I just couldn't find any results (probably due to my inability to word my question correctly).
We use laptops at ...
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How do you boot from the network using https?
How do you boot a Linux live image from a CDN using Https as boot protocol?
The reason for netbooting using a CDN would be to start fresh with a non persistent operating system image. Booting fresh ...
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Is it possible to allow only a certain secure USB boot media to boot an UEFI system?
I want to restrict all USB boot media from my system, except for a certain USB boot drive that I declare secure via a certain key.
Is this possible using UEFI/Secure Boot/TPM? Maybe via TPM? TPM gets ...
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Write-protection at hardware level for security
It seems to me that to maximise server security, one ought - in addition to the usual security measures implemented in software - to prevent the overwriting of certain parts of the server system, such ...
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OS on external drive -- is it safe?
So I'm installing macOS to my external hard drive partition, so I can have a 100% clean environment where I can engage with cryptocurrencies. (Exchanges, stable coins, protocols, putting actual money ...
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Is grub implementation of secure boot inherently flawed?
Definitions
Grub is the second stage bootloader often found in Linux distributions.
shim is the first bootloader ran by the ROM firmware. It is signed by Microsoft.
ROM firmware is the code embedded ...
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Microsoft site iso download flagged by Defender as hacktool while creating bootable USB through rufus [closed]
Iso of 32 bit Windows 10 professional english version downloaded from Microsoft's website by using chrome's developer tools to spoof a chromeOS signature, so as to avoid using Microsoft's download ...
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using secure boot in embedded systems
The whole idea about using Secure Boot in Embedded Systems to boot an operating system is new to me. I've never paid much attention to it previously. I just know that it prevents the loading at start-...
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How to execute Android verified boot during first boot after updating OS in Android?
I need to execute AVB (Android verified boot) during first boot after updating Android OS. BOARD_AVB_ENABLE = true is already present in the mk file device/hikey/common/BoardConfigCommon.mk in the ...
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What's stopping someone from copying my HDD/SSD?
Let's say I have to leave my computer unattended and turned off for a while with some strangers, is it possible for someone to clone my HDD and SSD data?
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Preventing boot from USB on Dell Inspiron 5559
So what I am looking for is a way to prevent anyone from booting from a USB drive on this specific Dell Inspiron 5559.
so normally what I would have to do is to set an Admin password in BIOS that ...
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Can malware have its own GRUB/boot-loader and use it to be active?
I use Ubuntu 16.04. After I mounted an ISO which may or may not have had malware in it, my system sometimes ends up showing a blank screen after logging into Ubuntu or reboots a minute or two after I ...
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Will encrypting a dual boot OS prevent viruses from spreading between the two?
Will encrypting a dual boot OS prevent viruses from spreading between the two? Also does linux have any MBR viruses? Will locking the bios in Windows and GRUB stop viruses from attaching and ...
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What is susceptible to Kon Boot hack tool?
I just learned about Kon Boot (from this YouTube video) and am wondering, how is such a hack tool guarded against? In the video the presenter claimed he had full disk encryption but was still able to ...
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Android OS verity signature bypass
I am just getting into custom firmware and rooting phones.
I have a phone that appears to be unrootable for whatever reason due to a locked bootloader. The private key was never released and we only ...
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Verifying that the CRTM is read-only for the purpose of trusted computing
When using a TPM to provide integrity measurements for a system via SRTM, the trusted computing base is reduced to only the TPM and CRTM. The CRTM is a component of the BIOS (specifically the ...
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Android verified boot within the boot sequence
I'm interested in understanding the verified boot process in Android, yet I was unable to find insights about some properties of the process.
From what I gathered so far I get that in Android devices ...
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Is it easy to create persistent programs that run before Android's boot? (in firmware maybe)
I've been wondering about which level of trust I can apply to a used phone bought from someone else. I can easily unlock the bootloader and flash a brand new Android. However, what about firmware ...
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Aren't these "new" self-programmable gaming mouses a new security threat? [duplicate]
I have recently bought one of the recent "best" USB gaming mouses out there. The thing that is bothering that the marketing material says it contains a self-programmable computer embedded in ...
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Booting from an external drive on work laptop (privacy)
Hi guys the company I work for gave me an awesome laptop but I don't want them to spy on my personal activities (they have lots of Spyware and security).
I am, however, able to boot from an external ...
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Entered FDE password in GRUB by mistake
For several reasons (I have an external monitor, etc.) when I booted the laptop I typed the FDE (Full Disk Encryption on Linux, LUKS) without looking at the monitor, and I ended up typing the full ...
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Why does openSUSE sporadically prompt during boot to trust its built-in certificate?
The conundrum
My wife’s laptop has been running openSUSE Leap 15.0 for several years, and she has once or twice been flummoxed by this prompt at the very beginning of the boot sequence, most recently ...
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Understanding Secure Boot
I'm trying to understand the secure boot process of an OS but there are few points I can't wrap my head around.
At a high level, afaik, secure boot ensures that the loaded OS is authenticated by its ...
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What is difference running Linux by live USB vs. by VirtualBox?
Can an expert please explain me which of following three methods working with an OS is technically considered more "secure" - and why (pros/cons)?
Security I mean aspects like:
-preventing any ...
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Is Secure Boot really Secure?
I found the concept of Secure Boot quite intriguing.
I can't say that I know much about it because I don't but I believe I understand the main concept of it.
Secure Boot verifies the signature of the ...
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Why authenticated boot not Secure boot?
Context: Secure boot is one of the important elements of Trusted Computing in computer system. One variety of the Secure boot is authenticated boot. While secure boot prevent the boot of a non trusted ...
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Why after dd'ing ISO file to entire USB flash device, only the first partition match the ISO checksum? [closed]
I use dd to "burn" an ISO file to USB stick:
dd bs=4M if=/mnt/media/ISO/Fedora-Workstation-Live-x86_64-31-1.9.iso of=/dev/sdd conv=fdatasync status=progress
Now I can see several partitions has ...
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What can a compromised firmware (UEFI) do after the hard-disk has been wiped?
I might be mistaken, but it seems the firmware (UEFI) needs to load some stuff from the disk to be able to do anything really interesting, like loading some advanced tools or loading the OS. Yet ...
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TrueCrypt "silently" updated bootloader
I have just updated TrueCrypt from version 7.1a to 7.2. Upon next system restart I have noticed that bootloader was updated as well, because it now shows message about TrueCrypt being not safe.
There ...
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VeraCrypt - Windows boots Automated Repair on UEFI/GPT
OK. So I used VeraCrypt to encrypt the system partition and now Windows boots its automated repair only. After the repair in what I think is Windows Recovery Environment I can choose to boot off USB ...
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Is it a security concern to publish the current boot_id?
On linux, a machine comes with a machine_id.
From the man page, it is said to be considered as "confidential" and must not be exposed to unstrusted parties.
Should the boot_id (from /proc/sys/kernel/...
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USB bootable CD protect against rootkits?
I have a infected computer, which I am trying to diagnose. The attack is probably very sophisticated, and I am not yet sure whether this has happened in the bios, mbr, active partition or any other ...
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Disk Encryption - Extended Boot Record protection
I posted something like this on SuperUser some months ago, but thought I'd try the security focused site. Anyway, I am working on a Disk Encryption project using OPAL drives. The OS is Linux, and is ...
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Why are pins required on boot on devices with fingerprint readers? [duplicate]
Both my iPad and my android phone are configured to allow access via either a pin, or a fingerprint scan. However, immediately after a reboot, neither device allows a fingerprint for the first unlock; ...
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Can a laptop be monitored when booted from external drive?
If a laptop is monitored (say from employer) and I boot it from an external USB hard drive or a LIVE-CD/USB-Stick, can it then still be monitored somehow?
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Security/Privacy OS With Boot On Thumbdrive
I am looking for a security-centered Linux OS that allows you to take the /boot partition on a thumb-drive to alleviate concerns of an Evil Maid Attacks! What OS is it easy to remove the /boot ...
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