Work / Embedded Security

MITRE eCTF 2026: Secure Firmware on Arm Cortex-M0+

Designed and attacked bare-metal firmware for MITRE's embedded Capture the Flag competition, using key-derivation-based cryptography for authentication.

Category
Embedded Security
Year
2026
Stack
Embedded Security · Cryptography · Arm Cortex-M0+

Competed in MITRE's embedded Capture the Flag (eCTF) 2026, designing and attacking bare-metal firmware on the MSPM0L2228 (Arm Cortex-M0+).

  • Contributed to secure firmware design using key-derivation-based cryptography for authentication and protected communication between embedded components.
  • Acted as both designer and attacker, per eCTF's format — building a secure system, then attempting to break other teams' implementations.
  • Deepened my understanding of embedded systems, hardware security, and applied cryptography beyond what standard coursework covers.

Full write-up: My MITRE eCTF 2026 Experience