Hackers on The Rocks | Gabriel Gonzalez, IOActive Director of Hardware Security, was recently featured in a Hackers on The Rocks podcast to discuss his research into drone hacking through fault injection.
“Today’s episode dives into hardware hacking at the transistor level, where attackers manipulate the laws of physics instead of software bugs. Gabriel walks us through his research on applying electromagnetic fault injection (EMFI) to DJI drones and using precisely timed electrical pulses to flip bits, bypass protections, and extract secrets from complex embedded systems. We explore how these physical attacks work, from setting up an XYZ table and a $200 PicoEMP pulse generator to running week-long experiments that flip a single instruction at the perfect nanosecond. Gabriel explains how these techniques can unlock firmware, extract encryption keys, and compromise fleets of devices all without touching a line of source code. Along the way, he demystifies UARTs, JTAGs, and the fine line between engineering precision and hacker intuition.”