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Author Topic: The government just admitted it will use smart home devices for spying  (Read 4009 times)

bill

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The government just admitted it will use smart home devices for spying
« on: February 09, 2016, 09:24:00 PM »
Another timely article telling us that the IoT devices in our homes really need more security.

Quote
The government just admitted it will use smart home devices for spying

If you want evidence that US intelligence agencies aren’t losing surveillance abilities because of the rising use of encryption by tech companies, look no further than the testimony on Tuesday by the director of national intelligence, James Clapper.

As the Guardian reported, Clapper made clear that the internet of things – the many devices like thermostats, cameras and other appliances that are increasingly connected to the internet – are providing ample opportunity for intelligence agencies to spy on targets, and possibly the masses. And it’s a danger that many consumers who buy these products may be wholly unaware of.

“In the future, intelligence services might use the [internet of things] for identification, surveillance, monitoring, location tracking, and targeting for recruitment, or to gain access to networks or user credentials,” Clapper told a Senate panel as part of his annual “assessment of threats” against the US.
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JasonD

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Re: The government just admitted it will use smart home devices for spying
« Reply #1 on: February 09, 2016, 09:55:20 PM »
I hear you Bill and agree that IoT devices are going to have the problems that the web browsers of yesterday had, today and tomorrow.... The obvious point of attack due to the realities of how products ship.... Fast and quick!

However I think this is natural side effect of the world we live in. Creating a secure device that sells, is a hell of a lot more expensive compared to shipping a device and dealing with the problems if and when they occur.

As to GCHQ / NSA and other similar .Gov hacking these things, I am sure they do and would be more surprised if they weren't trying to find holes and routes to the inside of devices that could be popular and owned by many.

Having said that, I don't think obscure security holes are something new. Many years ago I was playing around with hacking barcode readers (It was with the CueCat, for those that remember that failed Dot Com 1 startup) and I had massive fun with it. I got reminded of it as I read this post today that talks about the exact same type of exploits I was playing with all those years ago....

http://en.wooyun.io/2016/01/28/Barcode-attack-technique.html

https://twitter.com/tombkeeper/status/663730674017300480
« Last Edit: February 09, 2016, 10:41:18 PM by JasonD »
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JasonD

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Re: The government just admitted it will use smart home devices for spying
« Reply #2 on: March 13, 2016, 01:04:11 PM »
http://mjg59.dreamwidth.org/40505.html

TL;DR Absolutely ridiculous design means you can abuse other people's physical devices in a hotel.
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