Fuzzing
Fuzzing is an advanced software testing technique designed to uncover coding mistakes and security flaws. Fuzzers are automated tools that generate and input a wide range of data into a program, seeking to trigger crashes or other unexpected behaviors that may indicate underlying issues.
Benefits
- Comprehensive Testing: Modern fuzzing tools use sophisticated algorithms to generate diverse and intelligent input data. This approach allows for thorough testing of complex features, such as transaction signing processes, including all related internal logic.
- Uncovering Edge Cases: Fuzzers can run for extended periods, enabling them to trigger rare code paths and identify vulnerabilities in edge cases that might be missed by conventional testing methods.
- Continuous Security: Implementing continuous fuzzing in production environments helps catch potential errors introduced during development before they can be exploited by malicious actors.
- Quality Measurement: Organizations can use fuzzing results to assess and improve the overall quality of their software.
Limitations
- Time-Intensive: Obtaining meaningful results from fuzzing can take days or even weeks, requiring patience and dedication.
- Hardware Requirements: Fuzzing algorithms often demand modern, powerful hardware for optimal execution.
- Expertise Needed: Designing an effective fuzzing environment requires in-depth knowledge of the tested system and fuzzing tools.
- False Positives: Fuzzers may generate false positive results, necessitating careful analysis to distinguish genuine bugs from benign issues or configuration problems.
Fuzzing in the Polkadot Ecosystem
The Polkadot ecosystem takes fuzzing seriously, recognizing its value in ensuring the security, integrity, and quality of its projects. Parity Technologies has implemented a comprehensive suite of fuzzers integrated with various fuzzing engines.
These fuzzers serve multiple purposes:
- Testing specific features in projects
- Extending existing test suites
- Supporting property-based testing
Through a partnership with SRLabs, new fuzzers have been developed and made available to the ecosystem, including runtime fuzzers that support the Substrate Builder Program.
The Polkadot ecosystem offers a wide array of fuzzers, each tailored to specific components and functionalities:
| Name | Repository |
|---|---|
| EVM-fuzzer | rust-ethereum/evm |
| XCM-fuzzer | polkadot-sdk/polkadot/xcm/xcm-simulator/fuzzer |
| NPoS-elections-fuzzer | polkadot-sdk/substrate/primitives/npos-elections/fuzzer |
| Erasure-Coding-fuzzer | polkadot-sdk/polkadot/erasure-coding/fuzzer |
| bags-list-fuzzer | polkadot-sdk/substrate/frame/bags-list/fuzzer |
| arithmetic-fuzzer | polkadot-sdk/substrate/primitives/arithmetic/fuzzer |
| nomination-pools-fuzzer | polkadot-sdk/substrate/frame/nomination-pools/fuzzer |
| election-provider-support-fuzzer | polkadot-sdk/.../election-provider-support/solution-type/fuzzer |
| scale-codec-fuzzer | parity-scale-codec/fuzzer |
| substrate-runtime-fuzzer | srlabs/substrate-runtime-fuzzer |