# Beyond the Bridge: Contention-Based Covert and Side Channel Attacks on Multi-GPU Interconnect

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2404.03877 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.03877/

## Key facts

- Cited by 3 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 5 Apr 2024.

## Built on by (most cited first, 3 of 3)

- [SoK: Blockchain-Based Decentralized AI (DeAI)](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2411.17461/) (2024)
- [SoK: A Systems Perspective on Compound AI Threats and Countermeasures](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2411.13459/) (2024)
- [FreeRide: Harvesting Bubbles in Pipeline Parallelism](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.06941/) (2024)

## Abstract (arXiv)

High-speed interconnects, such as NVLink, are integral to modern multi-GPU systems, acting as a vital link between CPUs and GPUs. This study highlights the vulnerability of multi-GPU systems to covert and side channel attacks due to congestion on interconnects. An adversary can infer private information about a victim's activities by monitoring NVLink congestion without needing special permissions. Leveraging this insight, we develop a covert channel attack across two GPUs with a bandwidth of 45.5 kbps and a low error rate, and introduce a side channel attack enabling attackers to fingerprint applications through the shared NVLink interconnect.