5 ms·
From going through the discussion I'm getting the impression that the only feasible attack vector provided by USB is by emulating a keyboard like a USB Rubber D
by codethief 6y ago
From going through the discussion I'm getting the impression that the only feasible attack vector provided by USB is by emulating a keyboard like a USB Rubber Ducky. Is this really the case?
For instance, if my laptop is locked (with a proper[0][1] lock screen like xscreensaver) and that lock screen is capturing all keyboard input and magic SysRq keys[2] are disabled, too, is there really no way an attacker could use a USB device to hack my laptop?
Similarly, if my laptop is not locked but comes with unusual key bindings (maybe even a different keyboard layout), what are the chances of me getting hacked with a USB device? (Let's assume that the attacker manages to secretly plug in said USB device but doesn't want to access my unlocked laptop directly – maybe because we're in an open office and people are watching.)
My impression had always been that USB devices are dangerous beyond simple keyboard emulation but I might be wrong.
[0] https://www.jwz.org/blog/2015/04/i-told-you-so-again/ https://www.jwz.org/blog/2015/04/i-told-you-so-again/
[1] https://www.jwz.org/xscreensaver/toolkits.html https://www.jwz.org/xscreensaver/toolkits.html
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_SysRq_key https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_SysRq_key
- busterarm 6y agoBesides keyloggers, another reason people want this is because law enforcement has USB keepalive devices that will simulate mouse movement/keypresses to keep your computer from going to sleep. They do this to make sure your computer stays on and your RAM doesn't get powered off, which will allow them to read any decrypted data in memory whether or not your data is encrypted on disk. When they raid you, they come with massive UPS devices that they plug your computers into to give them as long a window as possible to get your data.
- isatty 6y agoHow will they replug my single PSU workstation to their UPS’?
- jefftk 6y agoUse insulated tools and a steady hand to cut into the power cord and splice in the UPS. The UPS is configured to match phase with the power that's already in the cord.
- bsdz 6y ago.. or get a HotPlug https://www.cru-inc.com/products/wiebetech/hotplug_field_kit/ https://www.cru-inc.com/products/wiebetech/hotplug_field_kit... Just discovered this now myself. The same company sells mouse jigglers.
- jefftk 6y agoHotPlug is one of the turnkey versions of this, yes
- busterarm 6y agoWhich is why if you want to defend against the easy versions of these and make people have to do work, only plug your desktop PCs into standalone outputs not on a surge protector. Yes, it won't defend against cord cutting. Edit: A more interesting defense I think would be to modify a surge protector for this specifically to defeat HotPlug. Only put your computer on a specific outlet and wire it so that if any other outlets complete circuit to kill power to the whole thing.
- boring_twenties 6y ago> [0] https://www.jwz.org/blog/2015/04/i-told-you-so-again/ https://www.jwz.org/blog/2015/04/i-told-you-so-again/ Sorry for the digression, but WTF is this guy doing? Looks like he redirects all requests that have HN as the referrer to a picture of a testicle. Copy-pasting the link (i.e., dropping the referrer) seems to work, though.
- nitrogen 6y agoThat's exactly what he's doing. I can't remember why he hates HN though, but it's been that way for a really long time.
- boring_twenties 6y agoWhat a little asshole!
- codethief 6y agoOh wow, I wasn't aware of that. Sorry about that.
- boring_twenties 6y agoNot your fault at all, I'd never expect such childish behavior from a website either.