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Saturday, April 20, 2024

Devices Supporting Bluetooth Core and Mesh Specifications Are Vulnerable to Impersonation Attacks and AuthValue Disclosure

An attacker acting as a man-in-the-middle (MITM) in the Passkey authentication procedure could use a crafted series of responses to determine each bit of the randomly generated Passkey.

Devices supporting the Bluetooth Core and Mesh Specifications are vulnerable to impersonation attacks and AuthValue disclosure that could allow an attacker to impersonate a legitimate device during pairing.

The Bluetooth Core Specification and Mesh Profile Specification are two specifications used to define the technical and policy requirements for devices that want to operate over Bluetooth connections. Researchers at the Agence nationale de la sécurité des systèmes d’information (ANSSI) have identified a number of vulnerabilities in each specification that allow impersonation attacks and AuthValue disclosures.

Devices supporting the Bluetooth Core Specification are affected by the following vulnerabilities:

Impersonation in the Passkey Entry Protocol

The Passkey Entry protocol used in Secure Simple Pairing (SSP), Secure Connections (SC), and LE Secure Connections (LESC) of the Bluetooth Core Specification is vulnerable to an impersonation attack that enables an active attacker to impersonate the initiating device without any previous knowledge (CVE-2020-26558). An attacker acting as a man-in-the-middle (MITM) in the Passkey authentication procedure could use a crafted series of responses to determine each bit of the randomly generated Passkey selected by the pairing initiator in each round of the pairing procedure, and once identified, the attacker can use these Passkey bits during the same pairing session to successfully complete the authenticated pairing procedure with the responder. Devices supporting BR/EDR Secure Simple Pairing in Bluetooth Core Specifications 2.1 through 5.2, BR/EDR Secure Connections Pairing in Bluetooth Core Specifications 4.1 through 5.2 and LE Secure Connections Pairing in Bluetooth Core Specifications 4.2 through 5.2 are affected by this vulnerability.

Read more at Software Engineering Institute CERT Coordination Center

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Homeland Security Today
The Government Technology & Services Coalition's Homeland Security Today (HSToday) is the premier news and information resource for the homeland security community, dedicated to elevating the discussions and insights that can support a safe and secure nation. A non-profit magazine and media platform, HSToday provides readers with the whole story, placing facts and comments in context to inform debate and drive realistic solutions to some of the nation’s most vexing security challenges.
Homeland Security Today
Homeland Security Todayhttp://www.hstoday.us
The Government Technology & Services Coalition's Homeland Security Today (HSToday) is the premier news and information resource for the homeland security community, dedicated to elevating the discussions and insights that can support a safe and secure nation. A non-profit magazine and media platform, HSToday provides readers with the whole story, placing facts and comments in context to inform debate and drive realistic solutions to some of the nation’s most vexing security challenges.

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