The Memory Sinkhole: x86 privilege escalation through SMM

Black Hat · Talk · 47 min · 2015 · YouTube title: The Memory Sinkhole - Unleashing An X86 Design Flaw Allowing Universal Privilege Escalation

Why it's here

Cited in discussions of CPU hidden features, Intel's security failures and SMM malware as a concrete example of a forgotten processor feature being exploited.

What it covers

Christopher Domas's Black Hat 2015 talk on a long-unnoticed x86 design flaw that lets an attacker reach System Management Mode, a ring below the OS. It explains how the legacy architecture allows universal privilege escalation and persistent, hard-to-detect malware.