MCU reverse engineering

Hynix Integrated Circuit (ic) Reverse Engineer

General Questions About Microcontroller Firmware Extraction

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• Can Mikatech break ics not listed on this site ?

  Different chip manufacturers have different part numbers, but the inner core of the chip can be make with same technology, it would be quite impossible to list all the part numbers where our technology can apply such as MYSON, STK, FEELING, ANALOG, FUJITSU, NOVATEK, LG/HYNDAI.
  
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• The Anatomy of a Read-Out Protection Bypass

  The read-out protection mechanism represents the first line of defense for any microcontroller (MCU) manufacturer seeking to safeguard proprietary firmware from unauthorized extraction. When an engineer enables read-out protection on a production device, they typically assume that the firmware will remain secure against all but the most sophisticated adversaries. Unfortunately, this assumption has proven false time and again across numerous microcontroller families. The STM32 series, for instance, implements a Flash Readout Protection (RDP) mechanism designed to prevent access through the debug interface, yet researchers have uncovered critical vulnerabilities in this scheme. One such vulnerability, dubbed "RDP Freeze," enables an attacker to precisely capture the microcontroller's internal state—including registers and RAM—with cycle-level accuracy. This level of precision allows for firmware recovery through manipulation of the hardware CRC accelerator during execution, as well as cryptographic key extraction from running systems. The process of bypassing read-out protection typically begins with reconnaissance of the target MCU's debug interfaces. Many microcontrollers expose Joint Test Action Group (JTAG) or Serial Wire Debug (SWD) pins that, if left accessible, provide a direct pathway to dump flash contents. However, when read-out protection is properly enabled, these interfaces reject read requests and may even trigger an automatic erase of the flash memory upon detection of tampering attempts. This self-destruct feature is intended to prevent adversaries from extracting firmware through brute-force or repeated access attempts. Despite these safeguards, fault injection techniques have demonstrated remarkable success in bypassing read-out protection across diverse MCU architectures. The practical reality is that read-out protection offers only conditional security. An attacker with physical access to the device and appropriate equipment can often circumvent these protections through voltage glitching, clock manipulation, or electromagnetic fault injection. The economics of such attacks have also shifted dramatically—where once only nation-state actors could afford the necessary equipment, today's hardware hacking tools are increasingly accessible and affordable. This democratization of attack capabilities means that even modestly funded adversaries can now attempt firmware extraction from protected microcontrollers. The lesson for embedded system designers is clear: read-out protection should be considered a deterrent rather than an absolute barrier, and defense-in-depth strategies must be employed to protect sensitive intellectual property and cryptographic material stored within MCU firmware.