knowledge center / theme 04
pos, mpos, and sst runtime threats
Different surface area — different regulator, different runtime.
POS terminals, Android-based mPOS, and self-service Linux kiosks share a payments role with mobile but operate in a distinct attack surface and a distinct regulatory frame — PCI PTS for fixed-function terminals, PCI MPoC for SoftPOS / mPOS, country-specific certification for SST. Each article documents an attack class, the syscalls and OS surfaces it touches, the certification regime that defines the boundaries, and the signed Evidence Token shape produced when the substrate sees the technique.
5 articles · technical reference · cite as published
Each row maps an attack class to the device class it operates on and the certification regime that defines the boundary — PCI PTS, PCI MPoC, scheme terminal certifications, country SST regulations.
| # | attack | surface | regulator / regime |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | POS terminal tampering — physical and firmware attack surface | fixed-function terminal | PCI PTS |
| 02 | Side-loaded applications on Android-based mPOS | Android mPOS / SoftPOS | PCI MPoC |
| 03 | OS downgrade attacks on payment terminals | terminal firmware | PCI PTS / scheme cert |
| 04 | Kiosk-shell escape on Linux self-service terminals | Linux SST / branch kiosk | country-specific SST cert |
| 05 | Attestation drift across distributed terminal fleets | fleet operations | scheme estate-management |
- 01 · 2026·02catalogue intermediate security regulatory
POS terminal tampering — physical and firmware attack surface
Physical-tamper detection, firmware-flash attack class, the boundary PCI PTS draws around the terminal envelope.
READ →
- 02 · 2026·02catalogue intermediate security developer
Side-loaded applications on Android-based mPOS
Android POS runtime + APK side-load vector, co-residence attacks, the PCI MPoC merchant-runtime requirements.
READ →
- 03 · 2026·02catalogue deep security regulatory
OS downgrade attacks on payment terminals
Rolling firmware to vulnerable versions, signed-bootloader gaps, where rollback protection lives in the chain.
READ →
- 04 · 2026·03catalogue deep security architect
Kiosk-shell escape on Linux self-service terminals
Kiosk-mode escape vectors on Linux SST, the boundaries the kiosk shell draws and where they leak.
READ →
- 05 · 2026·03explainer intermediate security architect
Attestation drift across distributed terminal fleets
Why per-device attestation fragments at fleet scale, what operational implications follow, how evidence composes.
READ →