Hacking Speculations about Switch 2 hacking

[Lucas_Zxc]

Because Horizon OS uses a microkernel design, tiny enough to make it right, exploit-free. The OS has been reimplemented as open source over and over, and no exploits have been found.

So, in theory, is the Switch 2 the first unhackable console in history?

 

[FernandoRocker]

So, in theory, is the Switch 2 the first unhackable console in history?

It will depend on NVIDIA and the new Tegra SoC, but so far they have implemented security measures not available on any other gaming console in history, like a Dual Core Lockstep (DCLS) to avoid voltage glitches.

They are now using encrypted RAM, and a quantum-secure signature scheme (XMSS) in early boot chain

 

[Elfransat]

That

Just a question for someone with more knowledge on these things, it seems like those in the know are saying that the Switch 2 is very secure.

With the PS5 scene springing in to life it’s made me wonder why experts such as SciresM and others feel it is so unhackable. Obviously the PS5 has been out nearly 6 years but it has jailbreak capability’s such as hypervisor bypass up until pretty current firmware and userland exploits even on the newest firmware.

Does the software on the Switch2 due to its simplicity and restrictions just contain fewer targets to exploit the console or is there another reason that it seemingly so secure?

I’m not asking to doubt the claims of people who know far more about this than me. More so out of curiosity

Just a question for someone with more knowledge on these things, it seems like those in the know are saying that the Switch 2 is very secure.

With the PS5 scene springing in to life it’s made me wonder why experts such as SciresM and others feel it is so unhackable. Obviously the PS5 has been out nearly 6 years but it has jailbreak capability’s such as hypervisor bypass up until pretty current firmware and userland exploits even on the newest firmware.

Does the software on the Switch2 due to its simplicity and restrictions just contain fewer targets to exploit the console or is there another reason that it seemingly so secure?

I’m not asking to doubt the claims of people who know far more about this than me. More so out of curiosity

That explains it really well, thank you. Basically seems very unlikely we will ever get software hacks, we were so lucky with the Switch 1 after all.

 

[Lucas_Zxc]

That



That explains it really well, thank you. Basically seems very unlikely we will ever get software hacks, we were so lucky with the Switch 1 after all.

I just hope this isn't the first unhackable console in history, I really want an emulator of it to play the games on my PC

 

[user97182]

I just hope this isn't the first unhackable console in history, I really want an emulator of it to play the games on my PC

I just want these games to be preserved.
In the Nintendo Direct this week, Nintendo announced multiple limited time events, those will be lost media, because no one can dump them, and access is gated through Nintendo eShop.

 

[FernandoRocker]

I just want these games to be preserved.
In the Nintendo Direct this week, Nintendo announced multiple limited time events, those will be lost media, because no one can dump them, and access is gated through Nintendo eShop.

Timed events cannot be usually preserved. They run on developer-owned servers, once the event finish, the events disappear. This is for all games, not specific to Nintendo.

 

[Acclaim7315]

So, in theory, is the Switch 2 the first unhackable console in history?

No, nothing is unhackable.

 

[Marc_LFD]

I'm really enjoying Pokémon Champions and if my NS2 were always offline I just couldn't play it which would be a shame.

There's a Star Fox 64 HD demo gotta try that.

 

[criston]

So, in theory, is the Switch 2 the first unhackable console in history?

No that would be the Xbox Series

 

[Skelletonike]

I just hope this isn't the first unhackable console in history, I really want an emulator of it to play the games on my PC

If/when it becomes possible to emulate the Switch 2, I'm guessing you will need a beefy PC to run it.

If what you want is to play Switch 2 games, just buy the bloody system.

 

[FernandoRocker]

So, in theory, is the Switch 2 the first unhackable console in history?

Yes.

 

[DiscostewSM]

No that would be the Xbox Series

Is that because it currently can't from investigations into it, or is it that folks don't really have much of a reason to with it having things like Dev Mode?

 

[criston]

Is that because it currently can't from investigations into it, or is it that folks don't really have much of a reason to with it having things like Dev Mode?

It's an extremely secure console by all accounts. Maybe not switch 2's level but still.

 

[emmauss]

Is that because it currently can't from investigations into it, or is it that folks don't really have much of a reason to with it having things like Dev Mode?

I think people misunderstand how hackers behave. Just because there's dev mode, doesn't mean hackers won't try to break into the system. I'd say they'd do it in spite if Dev mode. Dev mode itself is heavily restricted. No hacker worth their salt will just back down because of that
PS3 had Linux mode officially supported in early models. Hackers still hacked their way all over it that Sony discontinued the service.
The Xbox one is secure, because this isn't Microsoft's first time dealing with their systems being hacked, both Xbox and Windows

 

[RyanTheArchivist]

I just want these games to be preserved.
In the Nintendo Direct this week, Nintendo announced multiple limited time events, those will be lost media, because no one can dump them, and access is gated through Nintendo eShop.

Just don't start using "archival" as an excuse for wanting piracy. Seemingly 99% of people who say they want it for archival are liars in my experience. But really even if a game is delisted it doesn't mean its gone forever. Even if a game is removed from the eShop anyone who bought it can still redownload it. And well we've seemingly reached a point in the console space where back compat is basically expected if not mandatory. As a genuine archivist myself I currently see no issue. Eventually yes there will be need to dump game content for archival purposes but, there is no reason to rush to such a goal when all it leads to for most people is piracy.

Post automatically merged: Yesterday at 10:24 PM

I think people misunderstand how hackers behave. Just because there's dev mode, doesn't mean hackers won't try to break into the system. I'd say they'd do it in spite if Dev mode. Dev mode itself is heavily restricted. No hacker worth their salt will just back down because of that
PS3 had Linux mode officially supported in early models. Hackers still hacked their way all over it that Sony discontinued the service.
The Xbox one is secure, because this isn't Microsoft's first time dealing with their systems being hacked, both Xbox and Windows

Actually the PS3 situation is a lot simpler than that. A lot of hackers all they wish for is to be able to run homebrew and in some hackers case boot Linux. With the Xbox providing dev mode it ended up keeping the hacking scene rather small as there was little care to take it further since they basically gave us access to homebrew. In the PS3s case it was something entirely different. People were making good use of their "Other OS" feature to install Linux on the system and run their own homebrew within Linux. The problem was Sony saw this as a major security flaw and removed the feature that literally gave hackers what they wanted. And.... well soon after that is when the system was cracked. They basically asked for it.

Post automatically merged: Yesterday at 10:36 PM

If/when it becomes possible to emulate the Switch 2, I'm guessing you will need a beefy PC to run it.

If what you want is to play Switch 2 games, just buy the bloody system.

Yeah I think the Switch 1 hacking and emulation scene really jaded people's expectations lol. The Switch was probably one of the biggest exceptions in gaming when it came to it. Not only was it hacked very early on but people had full bootrom access. And since that made game dumping a very easy task it lead to emulator development very early on in the system's lifespan.

Which the emulation itself was also a huge exception as unlike other modern consoles Nintendo decided to use a stock chipset that was publicly documented on how it functioned. It made developing an emulator for it trivial in comparison to most systems. Which is why we saw VERY good emulators for the system before the generation was even half over. Thats not normal at all lol.

Now with the Switch 2 we are already way past that. Not only is dumping of game data going to require at least some form of kernel exploit but, even when data can be ripped developing an emulator is going to be significantly more complex. We are working with a completely custom SOC here now that we know next to nothing about. So even if the console is hacked emulation development is unlikely to even reach much of a playable state within the system's lifespan. Truthfully if we are lucky it may reach a playable point by the time the Switch 3 launches.

 

[Marc_LFD]

Just don't start using "archival" as an excuse for wanting piracy. Seemingly 99% of people who say they want it for archival are liars in my experience. But really even if a game is delisted it doesn't mean its gone forever. Even if a game is removed from the eShop anyone who bought it can still redownload it. And well we've seemingly reached a point in the console space where back compat is basically expected if not mandatory. As a genuine archivist myself I currently see no issue. Eventually yes there will be need to dump game content for archival purposes but, there is no reason to rush to such a goal when all it leads to for most people is piracy.

The game Afro Samurai 2 seems to be kind of lost media as no one has made a public backup of the PS4 version, although there is of the PC port.



Piracy is ultimately the only way that people have access to media which they have the file(s) that they can watch, play, read, or listen to.

 

[emmauss]

The problem was Sony saw this as a major security flaw and removed the feature that literally gave hackers what they wanted. And.... well soon after that is when the system was cracked. They basically asked for it.

They removed it because a hacker found an exploit using it to achieve full control over the os. It then became a vulnerability anyone could have used. So Sony removed the feature. They may have planned to remove it from the start, but hackers showing interest in it hastened their decision

Post automatically merged: Yesterday at 11:07 PM

The game Afro Samurai 2 seems to be kind of lost media as no one has made a public backup of the PS4 version, although there is of the PC port.



Piracy is ultimately the only way that people have access to media which they have the file(s) that they can watch, play, read, or listen to.

The game was delisted before it was possible to make dumps on the PS4, as it's a digital game. The game too sucks so bad that I doubt anyone kept a copy of it long enough to when the PS4 could be hacked.
This isn't lost media. It's media that should not exist in the first place

Post automatically merged: Yesterday at 11:13 PM

True archivist would have kept a PS4 system with the game installed from all those years, as well as buy each game that came along. If you want preservation, then keep multiple console with storage only for buying and downloading games, storing them for whenever you are able to dump them in future. That could have saved that game

 

[Nakamichi]

DS lite got hacked with a screw (Flashme), Wii with Tweezers, Switch with a paperclip... i suspect switch 2 will get hacked with a... Fork.

Yeah, sure, a fork, why not.

 

[RyanTheArchivist]

They removed it because a hacker found an exploit using it to achieve full control over the os. It then became a vulnerability anyone could have used. So Sony removed the feature. They may have planned to remove it from the start, but hackers showing interest in it hastened their decision

Post automatically merged: Yesterday at 11:07 PM

The game was delisted before it was possible to make dumps on the PS4, as it's a digital game. The game too sucks so bad that I doubt anyone kept a copy of it long enough to when the PS4 could be hacked.
This isn't lost media. It's media that should not exist in the first place

Post automatically merged: Yesterday at 11:13 PM

True archivist would have kept a PS4 system with the game installed from all those years, as well as buy each game that came along. If you want preservation, then keep multiple console with storage only for buying and downloading games, storing them for whenever you are able to dump them in future. That could have saved that game

That isnt exactly true. A hacker claimed they found one but no exploit was ever released and the CFW he claimed he had running was never released. Some people straight up think the entire thing was a hoax and Sony panicked.