Modern embedded systems increasingly rely on locked firmware, undocumented boot paths and hardware protections designed to resist inspection. Yet cost constraints, incomplete documentation and limited tooling often define real-world reverse engineering work.

This session explores practical approaches for extracting firmware and analyzing protected systems using low-cost tools, creative workflows and disciplined experimentation. It examines how engineers adapt when standard access paths fail, interfaces are disabled or protections behave differently than published research suggests. The focus remains on persistence, validation and methodical problem-solving when working with unfamiliar silicon and constrained resources, emphasizing repeatable techniques that prioritize understanding hardware behavior over relying on ideal lab conditions.

In this session, led by Hash Salehi, director of technology and innovation at ZBeta, you will learn:

• Identifying viable access paths when standard debug interfaces fail;
• Adapting fault injection techniques to constrained hardware setups;
• Managing uncertainty and undocumented behavior in embedded systems.