Blue Fox: Arm Assembly Internals and Reverse Engineering

by Maria Markstedter

Provides readers with a solid foundation in Arm assembly internals and reverse-engineering fundamentals as the basis for analyzing and securing billions of Arm devices Finding and mitigating security vulnerabilities in Arm devices is the next critical internet security frontier―Arm processors are already in use by more than 90% of all mobile devices, billions of Internet of Things (IoT) devices, and a growing number of current laptops from companies including Microsoft, Lenovo, and Apple. Written by a leading expert on Arm security, Blue Arm Assembly Internals and Reverse Engineering introduces readers to modern Armv8-A instruction sets and the process of reverse-engineering Arm binaries for security research and defensive purposes. Divided into two sections, the book first provides an overview of the ELF file format and OS internals, followed by Arm architecture fundamentals, and a deep-dive into the A32 and A64 instruction sets. Section Two delves into the process of reverse-engineering setting up an Arm environment, an introduction to static and dynamic analysis tools, and the process of extracting and emulating firmware for analysis. The last chapter provides the reader a glimpse into macOS malware analysis of binaries compiled for the Arm-based M1 SoC. Throughout the book, the reader is given an extensive understanding of Arm instructions and control-flow patterns essential for reverse engineering software compiled for the Arm architecture. Providing an in-depth introduction into reverse-engineering for engineers and security researchers alike, this Blue Arm Assembly Internals and Reverse Engineering is a vital resource for security researchers and reverse engineers who analyze software applications for Arm-based devices at the assembly level.

Genres: Programming, Hackers, Computer Science, Computers, Technology

480 pages, Paperback

Published April 11, 2023

Reviews

[Ari Demarco · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5: A must-have.
This book is simply incredible.
Even if the topic might seem difficult or if you have no clue about Reverse Engineering (RE) or assembly, this book does an excellent job of explaining details that are helpful at the moment you're reading it, or it tells you when and why they'll explain certain concepts (or even where to find more information about them).
By far, it's the most organized, "simple," and intuitive book I've read on this subject. It completely exceeded my expectations.
It took the author a while to release it, but the wait was worth it. I'm definitely ordering the "Red" edition of this book when it becomes available.

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even as an experienced reverse engineer, I learned so much from this book. Maria distills the essential aspects of AArch64 and AArch32 (A32 and T32) in a fun and engaging way.

The bonus chapter on reverse engineering macOS malware, by Patrick Wardle, was particularly insightful and helpful.

[I Panda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent structure and writing. The information is digestible. I recommend this to anyone searching for a reference to help them get started with the ARM architecture.

[Jacob Sandum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good intro to ARM assembly, great to have on desk during ARM reverse engineering tasks