Ohm's Law in Data Centers - A Voltage Side Channel for Timing Power Attacks

Explore the emerging threat of power attacks in multi-tenant colocation data centers through this 24-minute conference talk. Delve into the security challenges faced by shared power distribution systems, analyze the cost implications of power attacks, and discover a voltage side channel for precise attack timing. Examine experimental data from voltage measurements on a Dell server, investigate power supply dynamics, and gain insights into the relationship between power spectral density and server power. Understand the accuracy of the voltage side channel and its implications for timing attacks, concluding with a detailed examination of server power supply characteristics.

Intro
Multi-tenant data centers (a.k.a. colo )
Data center security
How to attack physical infrastructures?
Threat model
Cost analysis of power attacks
How to precisely time power attacks?
A voltage side channel
Voltage measurement of a Dell server
Experiment
Power supplies
PSD vs. server power
Accuracy of the voltage side channel
Timing accuracy
A closer look at server's power supply