Qi Alfred Chen

Research Impact

Media Coverage

[Euro S&P'17] Open Doors for Bob and Mallory: Open Port Usage in Android Apps and Security Implications

• Apps Available for Your Smartphone Could Steal Your Personal Information, WXYZ-TV (ABC afflicated), 06/28/2017

• An Obsure App Flaw Creates Backdoors in Millions of Smartphones, Wired, 04/28/2017

• Smartphone Security Hole, Michigan Engineering, 05/12/2017

• Hundreds of Popular Android Apps Have Open Ports, Making Them Prime Targets for Hacking, TechRepublic, 05/02/2017

• Open Ports Create Backdoors in Millions of Smartphones, Bleeping Computer, 04/28/2017

• Open Port Exploits Found In Play Store Apps, Android Headlines, 05/03/2017

• ...

[S&P'16] MitM Attack by Name Collision: Cause Analysis and Vulnerability Assessment in the New gTLD Era

• US-CERT: Leaked WPAD Queries Could Expose Corporate to MitM Attacks, SecurityAffairs, 05/26/2016

• When Domain Names Attack: the WPAD Name Collision Vulnerability, NakedSecurity, 05/25/2016

• WPAD Name Collision Flaw Allows MitM Attacks, SecurityWeek, 05/24/2016

• WPAD Name Collision Vulnerability - From US-CERT/Verisign, Reddit, 05/25/2016

• US-CERT: Domain Name Collision Bug Could Result in MitM Attacks, SCMagazine, 05/25/2016

• WPAD Name Collision Bug Opens Door for MitM Attackers, HelpNetSecurity, 05/24/2016

• Stuck in the Middle: MitM Attacks Could Stem From Well-Intentioned WPAD Use, SecurityIntelligence, 05/26/2016

• Michigan and Verisign Researchers Demonstrate New Man-in-the-Middle WPAD Query Attack, UMich EECS News, 05/26/2016

• ...

[Usenix Security'14] Peeking into Your App without Actually Seeing It: UI State Inference and Novel Android Attacks

• Android Attack Improves Timing, Allows Data Theft, Ars Technica, 08/24/2014

• Researchers Find Way to Hack Gmail with 92 Percent Success Rate, CNET News, 08/21/2014

• New Hack Could Steal Personal Information from Gmail, Other Popular Apps, CBS News, 08/21/2014

• Gmail Smartphone App Hacked by Researchers, BBC News, 08/22/2014

• Sneak Attack: Android Apps Can Spy on Each Other, NBC News, 08/21/2014

• Android Apps can do a Sneak Attack and Ambush Each Other, Android Headlines, 08/22/2014

• Sneak Attack: Android Apps Can Ambush Each Other, Tom's Guide, 08/21/2014

• Malicious Android Apps Can Hack Gmail, PC Magazine, 08/22/2014

• Android, Windows and iOS Vulnerability Allows 92 Percent Hack Success Rate For Popular Apps Like Gmail, HotHardware, 08/21/2014

• Shared Memory in Mobile Operating Systems Provides Ingress Point for Hackers, UMich EECS News, 08/25/2014

• ...

Vulnerability Disclosures

• US-CERT Alert TA16-144A: WPAD Name Collision Vulnerability

• CVE-2016-3898: Privilege escalation vulnerability in Android Telephony service

• CVE-2016-5227: Device authentication hijacking vulnerability in AirDroid

• AndroidID-21669196: Privilege escalation vulnerability in Android Short Message Service (SMS) service

• AndroidID-22541289: Privilege escalation vulnerability in Android Network Service Discovery (NSD) service

• AndroidID-22806457: Privilege escalation vulnerability in Android Round-Trip Time (RTT) service

• AndroidID-24776299: Privilege escalation vulnerability in Android GPS service

• AndroidID-13887522: Privilege escalation vulnerability in Android Input Method Manager, Activity Manager, and Window Manager services

• AndroidID-23782371: Privilege escalation vulnerability in Android Telephony and Telecomm service

• AndroidID-25113145: Privilege escalation vulnerability in Android Telephony service

Industry Discussions & Responses

• Email acknowledgements from Apple, Microsoft and Comcast on the reported client-side name collision vulnerabilities.

• RIPE 72 discussion, 05/23/2016: Alert (TA16‐144A) WPAD Name Collision Vulnerability

• Verisign's remediation suggestions for enterprise: White Paper: Enterprise Remediation for WPAD Name Collision Vulnerability

• Response from AirDroid application team on CVE-2016-5227