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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 844

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. What would you rather be great at: finding good deals, arriving on time, navigating or mental math? I could use a little help with all of these things, ha! Let’s go with finding good deals. 2. Who is your biggest supporter? El hub. He’s seen me through many dreams chased! 3. Claw clip or hair tie? Hair tie, black, stretchy. 4. I am too old to [FILL IN THE BLANK]? Deal with nonsense. Do any physical activity without a warmup, lol. *Not* draw boundaries. 5. Your ice cream truck treat of choice from back in the day? I always like the popsicles that were red, white and blue. Drumsticks were a fave, too! Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict, Karen P.S. Here are the questions to copy/paste with[Continue reading...]

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 826

On the first day of the Festival of Fabulousness, ruthless bandits of the Rodentia Trashpandia gang fell upon the royal carriage carrying Queen Karenina and Princess Coco on the road to town. Not only were the queen and princess in peril, but the carriage also carried the kingdom’s precious collection of bedazzled dance costumes! 🌟👗 As luck would have it, two Knights of the Tender Turkey rushed to their aid! With the help of a squire squirrel and his finch friend Fabian, who happened to be on their way to the festival at the time, the trio of furry fighters and their tiny winged companion sent the bandits scurrying and saved the day. Huzzah! 🤗 Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict, Karen

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What Are Your Go-To Face/Base Products?

I’d love to hear your take on why you love your foundation, tinted moisturizer, powder, concealer, etc, because this gal needs to do some makeup shopping STAT. For the first time in months, I’ve felt the urge to wear makeup again, hooray! A little background: I’ve been going uber-minimalist for the past few months, and I’ve whittled my daily beauty routine down significantly. I do a tinted sunscreen with SPF 50, cream blush, under eye color corrector, a brow pencil and mascara on most days. Oh, and setting spray, of course. A couple weeks ago, though, I got the urge to dig out my Charlotte Tilbury Beautiful Skin Foundation tinted moisturizer and some powder blush and, gasp! It felt REALLY good to wear it. Who knows? Maybe a return to a full-face of paint is in the cards for me in the near future. I think that’s the beauty of makeup. It’s always there for you to come back to it, if and when you want to do so. Anywho, enough of my rambling. Tell[Continue reading...]

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Camping by the River and Thoughts on Staying in the Moment

We went camping last weekend by the Russian River, and Marnie tagged along with us, which added a different spin to our usual routine. I’ve never gone camping with a dog, so it was a first! For this trip, I tried something new; I spent less time taking pics on my phone and more time trying to be present. I only took a handful of shots, including the one at the top. Have you ever tried this? It’s been years since I’ve attempted to not grab at least a good amount of photos during a trip on my phone, and it was kinda weird for me. I’m not sure how I feel about it! On one hand, it was really nice to not feel the need to constantly document everything. I really tried harder to burn images in my mind and capture the feelings at the moment—the sweetness of seeing Marnie walk right up to the edge of the river and getting right into the water without any hesitation, or how my heart swelled when[Continue reading...]

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 843

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Something you need to buy for yourself that isn’t beauty related? Shoes. I’ve been waking up with sore and cranky arches, so it’s time! I can’t believe there was a time in my life when I could wear whatever footwear and get up in the morning with happy feet. It’s wild to me! 2. Colors in your wardrobe that you wear the most? I wear a ton of blue, gray and black. Honestly, I’m not crazy about that particular palette; it’s just that I bought a bunch of basics in those colors a while back, and sticking to just a few different colors makes it easier to get dressed in the morning. I have some pink, red and yellow items up in the mix, too, which I[Continue reading...]

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 842

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Have you been watching the Olympics? Yes![Continue reading...]

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 824

I don’t know how Tabs did it. When I spend two days “in the woods,” I’m ready to tap out, but Tabs was renowned throughout the feline backpacking and wilderness communities for his ability to live off the land for weeks, even months. Must have been all those years he spent hustling between kitty modeling[Continue reading...]

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What Are Your Favorite Fragrance Notes?

I’ve been thinking a lot about perfume lately because my migraines have eased up a bit (yay), so I’ve been slowly working my way into wearing scents again. Anywho, fragrance notes. What are your favorites? I’m a sucker for rose notes, especially when they’re sweet (but not too sweet) and fresh. Tuberose is my favorite.[Continue reading...]

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7 More Things Beauty Enthusiasts Love

1. A freshly painted manicure or pedicure (or both) Don’t you love it when you look down at your nails and they’re so glossy and shiny? It makes me absurdly happy. 2. When your roots feel squeaky clean I can’t explain it, but there’s a moment in the shampooing process when it feels like all[Continue reading...]

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 841

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Painting or sketching? I’m not particularly great[Continue reading...]

The post Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 841 appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

What Are Your Favorite Fragrance Notes?

I’ve been thinking a lot about perfume lately because my migraines have eased up a bit (yay), so I’ve been slowly working my way into wearing scents again. Anywho, fragrance notes. What are your favorites? I’m a sucker for rose notes, especially when they’re sweet (but not too sweet) and fresh. Tuberose is my favorite.[Continue reading...]

The post What Are Your Favorite Fragrance Notes? appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

7 More Things Beauty Enthusiasts Love

1. A freshly painted manicure or pedicure (or both) Don’t you love it when you look down at your nails and they’re so glossy and shiny? It makes me absurdly happy. 2. When your roots feel squeaky clean I can’t explain it, but there’s a moment in the shampooing process when it feels like all[Continue reading...]

The post 7 More Things Beauty Enthusiasts Love appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 841

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Painting or sketching? I’m not particularly great[Continue reading...]

The post Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 841 appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 823

If you’re a cat, there’s a lot to see and do on our little oak tree-covered hill. Tabs was a BIG fan. We spent hundreds if not thousands of hours “patrolling” the hill. Rosie isn’t quite as adventurous as Tabs was when it comes to exploring the neighborhood, but she’s getting there. The hill is[Continue reading...]

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What’s One Thing in Your Makeup Bag Right Now That You Would Enthusiastically Recommend to Anyone and Everyone?

I gotta say that I pretty much love EVERYTHING I have in my makeup bag at the moment. There is absolutely nothing in there that I have “meh” feelings about, which I’m just now realizing is kind of awesome. All this to say that it’s really, really hard to pick just one thing, so here’s[Continue reading...]

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Media Briefing: EFF, Partners Warn UN Member States Are Poised to Approve Dangerous International Surveillance Treaty

Od: karen

SAN FRANCISCO—On Wednesday, July 24, at 11:00 am Eastern Time (8:00 am Pacific Time, 5:00 pm CET), experts from Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Access Now, Derechos Digitales, Human Rights Watch, and the International Fund for Public Interest Media will brief reporters about the imminent adoption of a global surveillance treaty that threatens human rights around the world, potentially paving the way for a new era of transnational repression.

The virtual briefing will update members of the media ahead of the United Nations’ concluding session of treaty negotiations, scheduled for July 29-August 9 in New York, to possibly finalize and adopt what started out as a treaty to combat cybercrime.

Despite
repeated warnings and recommendations by human rights organizations, journalism and industry groups, cybersecurity experts, and digital rights defenders to add human rights safeguards and rein in the treaty’s broad scope and expansive surveillance powers, UN Member States are expected to adopt the Russian-backed, deeply flawed draft.

The experts will discuss the draft treaty in terms of shifts in geopolitical power, abuse of cybercrime laws, and challenges posed by the rising influence of Russia and China. A question-and-answer session will follow speaker presentations.  

WHAT:
Virtual media briefing on UN surveillance treaty

HOW:
To join the news conference remotely, please register from the following link to receive the webinar ID and password:
https://eff.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwkd-GsrzoiH9Jt3gsl2CJ55Xv0hBDguxW5

SPEAKERS:
Tirana Hassan, Executive Director, Human Rights Watch
Paloma Lara-Castro, Public Policy Coordinator, Derechos Digitales
Khadija Patel, Journalist in Residence, International Fund for Public Interest Media
Katitza Rodriguez, Policy Director for Global Policy, EFF
Moderator: Raman Jit Singh Chima, Global Cybersecurity Lead and Senior International Counsel, Access Now

WHEN:
Wednesday, July 24, at 11:00 am Eastern Time, 8:00 am Pacific Time, 5:00 pm CET

For EFF’s submissions and Coalition Letters to UN Ad Hoc Committee overseeing treaty negotiations:
https://www.eff.org/pages/submissions#main-content

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 837

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Brunch or afternoon tea? I love both,[Continue reading...]

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 818

For years, whenever there was a disturbance in the force… Tabs was to blame. After all, he started as a cadet in the Galactic Empire. Eventually, though, he grew to hate the Empire and their cruelty, and so he chose the Jedi way. And now, Rosie carries on the Jedi cat legacy, helping animals and[Continue reading...]

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Summer Beauty Wishlist

Good morning and happy Caturday from my happy heart to yours. I’m SO RELIEVED that it’s the weekend. Is it just me, or was this week a doozy? I don’t know why year after year, I trick myself into thinking our summer schedule will be less chaotic compared to the regular school year, but every[Continue reading...]

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Some Thoughts on Being a Woman in These Crazy Times

The surgeon general recently called for health warnings on social media due to rising rates of mental health problems amongst kids and teens. This got me thinking about the mental load women carry – well, at least I carry it with me – that could have benefited from a big warning label sign. Let me[Continue reading...]

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 836

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Lefty or a righty? Righty. 2. Always[Continue reading...]

The post Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 836 appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 835

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Apple pie or cheesecake? Ideally both, ha![Continue reading...]

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 816

Tabs We’ve had grillin’ on our minds here at Tabs the Cat Industries, LLC. And, yup, I did the monthly summer maintenance on my tabby’s favorite grill. We had so many good times using that grill… As you know, Tabs was a virtuoso at the grill, and every summer weekend, company HQ was filled with[Continue reading...]

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Saturday Surfing, June 8, 2024!

Hi, friend. I had grand plans to do a bunch of writing this morning but a fast-and-furious migraine decided that wasn’t going to happen, LOL! Staring at a computer screen seems to amplify the symptoms, so I’ve been lying down in a dark room for the last hour waiting for the nausea to subside. Anywho,[Continue reading...]

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Makeup Musings on Mascara

mascara kitties mbb blog post top pic

You know what’s kinda funny to me? Those scenarios when people ask what your must-have makeup items are for a deserted island scenario. Presumably the least of your worries would be whether or not you had your favorite lipstick or blush. If there’s anything I’ve learned from side-eye watching “Alone” with El Hub, it’s that[Continue reading...]

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 834

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Call or text? Text for silly things[Continue reading...]

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The Case of the Missing Pencil | New Work Dress | Grab This at Trader Joe’s ASAP

Oh my gosh, the funniest thing happened at work yesterday afternoon. It’s been super busy for the past few weeks, and I’ve been pretty much glued to my computer screen from the time I walk in until the time I head out. Anywho, when I have to keep track of a lot of things, I[Continue reading...]

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Makeup Musings on Twist-Up Eyeliner

charlotte tilbury pillow talk

You wouldn’t think that a twist-up eyeliner would be that much different from a regular pencil liner that you sharpen. They’re both eyeliners, right? And technically both do the same thing, aka lining one’s eyes. Buuuuuuut ever since I joined the ranks of beauty lovers who only apply makeup under extreme circumstances, aka the five[Continue reading...]

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 833

essie red white blue

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Outdoor concert or outdoor movie? Um, neither[Continue reading...]

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 814

As you know, cats have been strong supporters of the U.S. Armed Forces since before the American Revolution, providing logistical “lurvy” support to service members, veterans and their families, as well as providing volunteer pest control on bases and naval vessels. A few years ago, before his departure from this earthly plane, Tabs designed and[Continue reading...]

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💾

Saturday Surfing, May 25, 2024!

Hiya! Connor has the last of her dance performances for the school year this weekend, so chances are I’m doing dance mom things as you read this. 🙂 I’ve probably mentioned this before, but where I live in the Bay Area, you’ll often see lots of wildlife roaming about. Case in point, I was coming[Continue reading...]

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 813

We’re lucky to have such a great leader here at Tabs the Cat Industries, LLC. Rosie, following in the larger-than-life footsteps of Tabs, runs a tight ship. She likes to meet all the new recruits, go over the business, set expectations, etc., etc. Some of the staff says she can be a little intimidating… But[Continue reading...]

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Saturday Check In: It’s All About Books Today!

Well hi there and happy Saturday! Today is the first weekend in a while that we don’t have anything to do or any place to be, so I’m looking forward to leisurely doing all the things I need to do to keep the house from getting buried under pet hair because OMG, there’s so much[Continue reading...]

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Life Lately

Well, it took a few weeks, but we finally did it. Both Rosie Pose and Marnie are running free throughout the house, and so far, knock on wood, all relatively peaceful within our little corner of the universe. For the most part Rosie appears to be disinterested in Marnie, except when she’s pulling a**hole power[Continue reading...]

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14 Lessons Learned from Big Life Changes

Apparently the universe needs to keep reminding me of these things! Maybe if I write them down, I’ll be less surprised when it happens again? There’s a period of shock, but FYI… It’s only temporary. Your life will feel like it’s been turned upside down, but again… It’s only temporary. You might think you’ve made[Continue reading...]

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 831

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Crocs or Birkenstocks? I don’t own either,[Continue reading...]

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 812

It’s almost dusk here at Casa de MBB, and we’re getting cleaned up and ready for bed, but I still wanted to wish you a Happy Mother’s Day. There’s so much to say about Mother’s Day, isn’t there? It can be an emotional day in many ways for many reasons, different for everyone. People have[Continue reading...]

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I Found the Loveliest Lipgloss

Somewhere along the way, I became the type of makeup person who’d rather have one thing they really love instead of 10 things they kinda like, and when it comes to lipgloss, the only one I’m rollin’ with these days is Rare Beauty’s Stay Vulnerable Glossy Lip Balm in Nearly Apricot ($20), a sheer coral.[Continue reading...]

The post I Found the Loveliest Lipgloss appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

Makeup I Wear For Frequent Sunscreen Reapplication Throughout the Day

I didn’t think my makeup routine could get any more streamlined, yet here we are, LOL! I’ve started skipping powder and base. I also mainly rely on my fingers to blend, and only use two or three brushes, max. This happened recently because I went to a dermatologist about a month ago, and he said[Continue reading...]

The post Makeup I Wear For Frequent Sunscreen Reapplication Throughout the Day appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 830

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Caramel or chocolate? Caramel! 2. Do you[Continue reading...]

The post Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 830 appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

I Found the Loveliest Lipgloss

Somewhere along the way, I became the type of makeup person who’d rather have one thing they really love instead of 10 things they kinda like, and when it comes to lipgloss, the only one I’m rollin’ with these days is Rare Beauty’s Stay Vulnerable Glossy Lip Balm in Nearly Apricot ($20), a sheer coral.[Continue reading...]

The post I Found the Loveliest Lipgloss appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

Makeup I Wear For Frequent Sunscreen Reapplication Throughout the Day

I didn’t think my makeup routine could get any more streamlined, yet here we are, LOL! I’ve started skipping powder and base. I also mainly rely on my fingers to blend, and only use two or three brushes, max. This happened recently because I went to a dermatologist about a month ago, and he said[Continue reading...]

The post Makeup I Wear For Frequent Sunscreen Reapplication Throughout the Day appeared first on Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup.

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 830

So…what is the Monday Poll? Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). 1. Caramel or chocolate? Caramel! 2. Do you[Continue reading...]

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 811

There’s a new girl in town…and her name is Marnie Marie. Marnie for short. I mentioned this a few days ago, but we took on a new boarder, or rather a new Aussie Shepherd. This was the end of our first week together. Oh! — but before I forget, here’s a really cool story. A[Continue reading...]

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SRAM Security Concerns Grow

SRAM security concerns are intensifying as a combination of new and existing techniques allow hackers to tap into data for longer periods of time after a device is powered down.

This is particularly alarming as the leading edge of design shifts from planar SoCs to heterogeneous systems in package, such as those used in AI or edge processing, where chiplets frequently have their own memory hierarchy. Until now, most cybersecurity concerns involving volatile memory have focused on DRAM, because it is often external and easier to attack. SRAM, in contrast, does not contain a component as obviously vulnerable as a heat-sensitive capacitor, and in the past it has been harder to pinpoint. But as SoCs are disaggregated and more features are added into devices, SRAM is becoming a much bigger security concern.

The attack scheme is well understood. Known as cold boot, it was first identified in 2008, and is essentially a variant of a side-channel attack. In a cold boot approach, an attacker dumps data from internal SRAM to an external device, and then restarts the system from the external device with some code modification. “Cold boot is primarily targeted at SRAM, with the two primary defenses being isolation and in-memory encryption,” said Vijay Seshadri, distinguished engineer at Cycuity.

Compared with network-based attacks, such as DRAM’s rowhammer, cold boot is relatively simple. It relies on physical proximity and a can of compressed air.

The vulnerability was first described by Edward Felton, director of Princeton University’s Center for Information Technology Policy, J. Alex Halderman, currently director of the Center for Computer Security & Society at the University of Michigan, and colleagues. The breakthrough in their research was based on the growing realization in the engineering research community that data does not vanish from memory the moment a device is turned off, which until then was a common assumption. Instead, data in both DRAM and SRAM has a brief “remanence.”[1]

Using a cold boot approach, data can be retrieved, especially if an attacker sprays the chip with compressed air, cooling it enough to slow the degradation of the data. As the researchers described their approach, “We obtained surface temperatures of approximately −50°C with a simple cooling technique — discharging inverted cans of ‘canned air’ duster spray directly onto the chips. At these temperatures, we typically found that fewer than 1% of bits decayed even after 10 minutes without power.”

Unfortunately, despite nearly 20 years of security research since the publication of the Halderman paper, the authors’ warning still holds true. “Though we discuss several strategies for mitigating these risks, we know of no simple remedy that would eliminate them.”

However unrealistic, there is one simple and obvious remedy to cold boot — never leave a device unattended. But given human behavior, it’s safer to assume that every device is vulnerable, from smart watches to servers, as well as automotive chips used for increasingly autonomous driving.

While the original research exclusively examined DRAM, within the last six years cold boot has proven to be one of the most serious vulnerabilities for SRAM. In 2018, researchers at Germany’s Technische Universität Darmstadt published a paper describing a cold boot attack method that is highly resistant to memory erasure techniques, and which can be used to manipulate the cryptographic keys produced by the SRAM physical unclonable function (PUF).

As with so many security issues, it’s been a cat-and-mouse game between remedies and counter-attacks. And because cold boot takes advantage of slowing down memory degradation, in 2022 Yang-Kyu Choi and colleagues at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), described a way to undo the slowdown with an ultra-fast data sanitization method that worked within 5 ns, using back bias to control the device parameters of CMOS.

Fig. 1: Asymmetric forward back-biasing scheme for permanent erasing. (a) All the data are reset to 1. (b) All the data are reset to 0. Whether all the data where reset to 1 or 0 is determined by the asymmetric forward back-biasing scheme. Source: KAIST/Creative Commons [2]

Fig. 1: Asymmetric forward back-biasing scheme for permanent erasing. (a) All the data are reset to 1. (b) All the data are reset to 0. Whether all the data where reset to 1 or 0 is determined by the asymmetric forward back-biasing scheme. Source: KAIST/Creative Commons [2]

Their paper, as well as others, have inspired new approaches to combating cold boot attacks.

“To mitigate the risk of unauthorized access from unknown devices, main devices, or servers, check the authenticated code and unique identity of each accessing device,” said Jongsin Yun, memory technologist at Siemens EDA. “SRAM PUF is one of the ways to securely identify each device. SRAM is made of two inverters cross-coupled to each other. Although each inverter is designed to be the same device, normally one part of the inverter has a somewhat stronger NMOS than the other due to inherent random dopant fluctuation. During the initial power-on process, SRAM data will be either data 1 or 0, depending on which side has a stronger device. In other words, the initial data state of the SRAM array at the power on is decided by this unique random process variation and most of the bits maintain this property for life. One can use this unique pattern as a fingerprint of a device. The SRAM PUF data is reconstructed with other coded data to form a cryptographic key. SRAM PUF is a great way to anchor its secure data into hardware. Hackers may use a DFT circuit to access the memory. To avoid insecurely reading the SRAM information through DFT, the security-critical design makes DFT force delete the data as an initial process of TEST mode.”

However, there can be instances where data may be required to be kept in a non-volatile memory (NVM). “Data is considered insecure if the NVM is located outside of the device,” said Yun. “Therefore, secured data needs to be stored within the device with write protection. One-time programmable (OTP) memory or fuses are good storage options to prevent malicious attackers from tampering with the modified information. OTP memory and fuses are used to store cryptographic keys, authentication information, and other critical settings for operation within the device. It is useful for anti-rollback, which prevents hackers from exploiting old vulnerabilities that have been fixed in newer versions.”

Chiplet vulnerabilities
Chiplets also could present another vector for attack, due to their complexity and interconnections. “A chiplet has memory, so it’s going to be attacked,” said Cycuity’s Seshadri. “Chiplets, in general, are going to exacerbate the problem, rather than keeping it status quo, because you’re going to have one chiplet talking to another. Could an attack on one chiplet have a side effect on another? There need to be standards to address this. In fact, they’re coming into play already. A chiplet provider has to say, ‘Here’s what I’ve done for security. Here’s what needs to be done when interfacing with another chiplet.”

Yun notes there is a further physical vulnerability for those working with chiplets and SiPs. “When multiple chiplets are connected to form a SiP, we have to trust data coming from an external chip, which creates further complications. Verification of the chiplet’s authenticity becomes very important for SiPs, as there is a risk of malicious counterfeit chiplets being connected to the package for hacking purposes. Detection of such counterfeit chiplets is imperative.”

These precautions also apply when working with DRAM. In all situations, Seshardi said, thinking about security has to go beyond device-level protection. “The onus of protecting DRAM is not just on the DRAM designer or the memory designer,” he said. “It has to be secured by design principles when you are developing. In addition, you have to look at this holistically and do it at a system level. You must consider all the other things that communicate with DRAM or that are placed near DRAM. You must look at a holistic solution, all the way from software down to things like the memory controller and then finally, the DRAM itself.”

Encryption as a backup
Data itself always must be encrypted as second layer of protection against known and novel attacks, so an organization’s assets will still be protected even if someone breaks in via cold boot or another method.

“The first and primary method of preventing a cold boot attack is limiting physical access to the systems, or physically modifying the systems case or hardware preventing an attacker’s access,” said Jim Montgomery, market development director, semiconductor at TXOne Networks. “The most effective programmatic defense against an attack is to ensure encryption of memory using either a hardware- or software-based approach. Utilizing memory encryption will ensure that regardless of trying to dump the memory, or physically removing the memory, the encryption keys will remain secure.”

Montgomery also points out that TXOne is working with the Semiconductor Manufacturing Cybersecurity Consortium (SMCC) to develop common criteria based upon SEMI E187 and E188 standards to assist DM’s and OEM’s to implement secure procedures for systems security and integrity, including controlling the physical environment.

What kind and how much encryption will depend on use cases, said Jun Kawaguchi, global marketing executive for Winbond. “Encryption strength for a traffic signal controller is going to be different from encryption for nuclear plants or medical devices, critical applications where you need much higher levels,” he said. “There are different strengths and costs to it.”

Another problem, in the post-quantum era, is that encryption itself may be vulnerable. To defend against those possibilities, researchers are developing post-quantum encryption schemes. One way to stay a step ahead is homomorphic encryption [HE], which will find a role in data sharing, since computations can be performed on encrypted data without first having to decrypt it.

Homomorphic encryption could be in widespread use as soon as the next few years, according to Ronen Levy, senior manager for IBM’s Cloud Security & Privacy Technologies Department, and Omri Soceanu, AI Security Group manager at IBM.  However, there are still challenges to be overcome.

“There are three main inhibitors for widespread adoption of homomorphic encryption — performance, consumability, and standardization,” according to Levy. “The main inhibitor, by far, is performance. Homomorphic encryption comes with some latency and storage overheads. FHE hardware acceleration will be critical to solving these issues, as well as algorithmic and cryptographic solutions, but without the necessary expertise it can be quite challenging.”

An additional issue is that most consumers of HE technology, such as data scientists and application developers, do not possess deep cryptographic skills, HE solutions that are designed for cryptographers can be impractical. A few HE solutions require algorithmic and cryptographic expertise that inhibit adoption by those who lack these skills.

Finally, there is a lack of standardization. “Homomorphic encryption is in the process of being standardized,” said Soceanu. “But until it is fully standardized, large organizations may be hesitant to adopt a cryptographic solution that has not been approved by standardization bodies.”

Once these issues are resolved, they predicted widespread use as soon as the next few years. “Performance is already practical for a variety of use cases, and as hardware solutions for homomorphic encryption become a reality, more use cases would become practical,” said Levy. “Consumability is addressed by creating more solutions, making it easier and hopefully as frictionless as possible to move analytics to homomorphic encryption. Additionally, standardization efforts are already in progress.”

A new attack and an old problem
Unfortunately, security never will be as simple as making users more aware of their surroundings. Otherwise, cold boot could be completely eliminated as a threat. Instead, it’s essential to keep up with conference talks and the published literature, as graduate students keep probing SRAM for vulnerabilities, hopefully one step ahead of genuine attackers.

For example, SRAM-related cold boot attacks originally targeted discrete SRAM. The reason is that it’s far more complicated to attack on-chip SRAM, which is isolated from external probing and has minimal intrinsic capacitance. However, in 2022, Jubayer Mahmod, then a graduate student at Virginia Tech and his advisor, associate professor Matthew Hicks, demonstrated what they dubbed “Volt Boot,” a new method that could penetrate on-chip SRAM. According to their paper, “Volt Boot leverages asymmetrical power states (e.g., on vs. off) to force SRAM state retention across power cycles, eliminating the need for traditional cold boot attack enablers, such as low-temperature or intrinsic data retention time…Unlike other forms of SRAM data retention attacks, Volt Boot retrieves data with 100% accuracy — without any complex post-processing.”

Conclusion
While scientists and engineers continue to identify vulnerabilities and develop security solutions, decisions about how much security to include in a design is an economic one. Cost vs. risk is a complex formula that depends on the end application, the impact of a breach, and the likelihood that an attack will occur.

“It’s like insurance,” said Kawaguchi. “Security engineers and people like us who are trying to promote security solutions get frustrated because, similar to insurance pitches, people respond with skepticism. ‘Why would I need it? That problem has never happened before.’ Engineers have a hard time convincing their managers to spend that extra dollar on the costs because of this ‘it-never-happened-before’ attitude. In the end, there are compromises. Yet ultimately, it’s going to cost manufacturers a lot of money when suddenly there’s a deluge of demands to fix this situation right away.”

References

  1. S. Skorobogatov, “Low temperature data remanence in static RAM”, Technical report UCAM-CL-TR-536, University of Cambridge Computer Laboratory, June 2002.
  2. Han, SJ., Han, JK., Yun, GJ. et al. Ultra-fast data sanitization of SRAM by back-biasing to resist a cold boot attack. Sci Rep 12, 35 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-03994-2

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