Paper 2025/568
An in-depth security evaluation of the Nintendo DSi gaming console
, KU Leuven, KU Leuven, KU Leuven, KU LeuvenAbstract
The Nintendo DSi is a handheld gaming console released by Nintendo in 2008. In Nintendo's line-up the DSi served as a successor to the DS and was later succeeded by the 3DS. The security systems of both the DS and 3DS have been fully analysed and defeated. However, for over 14 years the security systems of the Nintendo DSi remained standing and had not been fully analysed. To that end this work builds on existing research and demonstrates the use of a second-order fault injection attack to extract the ROM bootloaders stored in the custom system-on-chip used by the DSi. We analyse the effect of the induced fault and compare it to theoretical fault models. Additionally, we present a security analysis of the extracted ROM bootloaders and develop a modchip using cheap off-the-shelf components. The modchip allows to jailbreak the console, but more importantly allows to resurrect consoles previously assumed irreparable.
Note: Recording of a presentation of more or less the same material to a more general audience available at https://media.ccc.de/v/37c3-11736-nintendo_hacking_2023_2008
Metadata
- Available format(s)
-
PDF
- Category
- Implementation
- Publication info
- Published elsewhere. CARDIS 2023
- DOI
- 10.1007/978-3-031-54409-5_2
- Keywords
- Nintendo DSiboot ROMfault injectionsecure bootmodchipembedded security
- Contact author(s)
-
pcy sluys @ esat kuleuven be
lennert wouters @ esat kuleuven be
benedikt gierlichs @ esat kuleuven be
ingrid verbauwhede @ esat kuleuven be - History
- 2025-03-31: approved
- 2025-03-28: received
- See all versions
- Short URL
- https://ia.cr/2025/568
- License
-
CC BY-NC-SA
BibTeX
@misc{cryptoeprint:2025/568,
author = {pcy Sluys and Lennert Wouters and Benedikt Gierlichs and Ingrid Verbauwhede},
title = {An in-depth security evaluation of the Nintendo {DSi} gaming console},
howpublished = {Cryptology {ePrint} Archive, Paper 2025/568},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.1007/978-3-031-54409-5_2},
url = {https://eprint.iacr.org/2025/568}
}
