Analyzing Open-Source Bootloaders: Finding Vulnerabilities Faster with AI
Microsoft researchers have successfully utilized Microsoft Security Copilot to uncover several vulnerabilities in multiple open-source bootloaders that impact all operating systems relying on Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) Secure Boot. Through a series of carefully crafted prompts, the team identified and refined security issues, ultimately discovering an exploitable integer overflow vulnerability in the GRUB2, U-boot, and Barebox bootloaders.
The discovery process was expedited using Microsoft Security Copilot, demonstrating the potential of AI-assisted security research in identifying complex vulnerabilities across widely used open-source bootloaders. The research highlights the importance of UEFI Secure Boot security across multiple operating systems and demonstrates how AI tools can enhance vulnerability discovery in complex software ecosystems.
