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Show HN: The firmware that got me detained by Swiss Intelligence

5 points by reutinger 8mo ago

reutinger 8mo ago
OP here. I literally just got released from 13 hours in a Swiss holding cell because this prototype looked like a bomb to the WEF police. To get released, I had to walk a forensic expert ('Chris') through this codebase line-by-line. He didn't care about the pitch; he audited the Rust borrow checker logs, the specific hardware interrupts, and the encryption implementation to prove it wasn't a trigger mechanism. It was the most aggressive code audit of my life. Happy to answer questions about the stack, the 'vibe coding' workflow I used to build it, or the Swiss prison lasagna."
- steveklabnik 8mo ago
  What are the “borrow checker logs” in this context?
  - reutinger 8mo ago
    Hi Steve- honored to see you here! (I’m practically using your book to reverse-engineer what the AI wrote ). To be precise with my terminology: I showed the forensic expert the terminal history and compiler output in my VS Code/Cursor logs. Because I was 'vibe coding' with LLMs, I had a long scrollback of cargo build failing repeatedly with ownership/borrow errors. 'Chris' (the forensic expert) reviewed that timestamped history to verify that I was genuinely struggling to compile a harmless display driver in a hotel room that morning, rather than deploying a pre-compiled malicious payload. His logic was essentially: 'A terrorist brings a clean binary. A developer brings a terminal full of red text.' The broken build state was my alibi.
    - steveklabnik 8mo ago
      Ah, that makes sense, I was just confused because I don't think of the borrow checker as producing logs, but the terminal output is a great thing to show someone, yeah.
KomoD 8mo ago
So it wasn't really the firmware but the hardware that they thought looked suspicious and the fact that you placed a black box in a hotel restaurant and walked away. Especially suspicious since WEF guests were staying there. Thread for those who don't have an account: https://xcancel.com/s_heyneman/status/2014519007244656652 https://xcancel.com/s_heyneman/status/2014519007244656652
- ggm 8mo ago
  Based on what this looks like, I don't really feel surprised at the outcome. Based on what security is meant to do, Likewise. Based on the lack of (apparent) self awareness of the author, I think I'd expect a little better of somebody using a device as a pitch-deck to the wealthy in a location of heightened security. Is it security pantomime? yes. What did the OP expect? Is the OP really as naieve as they are saying? Was this not forseen/forseeable? Being wise after the event means being wise. Does anyone else reading this think the OP was not wise?
  - defrost 8mo ago
    It's pretty straightforward, if it looks like a bomb, it gets treated like it might be a bomb. If it looks like Osama bin Laden attending a War on Terror summit ... they'll wave it right through. * https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2020/jan/20/how-the-chaser-invaded-apec-a-small-camera-was-secreted-behind-his-scrotum https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2020/jan/20/how-the... Not an especially wise move if unintended, and a precarious risk if intended fpr the drama. I'm thinking my personal best time getting grilled over a suspected security issue runs to 36 hours or so .. hard to tell in retrospect, the US TLA bods do like their blinken lights and screeching music to mess with peoples internal clocks.
    - reutinger 8mo ago
      36 hours? You win. I bow to the master. You are absolutely right about the optics (and the blinkin' lights). The forensic expert made the same point—unintended drama is still drama. I definitely didn't aim for this (just wanted to demo the hardware), but once the process started, I had to respect the thoroughness. Their protocols are no joke.
1970-01-01 8mo ago
No props. You can't do that. It looks like a bomb. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Mohamed_clock_incident https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Mohamed_clock_incident
- reutinger 8mo ago
  Fair point on the optics. In hindsight, clear casing would have been the smart play for 2026. That said, the scrutiny shifted quickly from the 'black box' visual to the actual tech. It wasn't just a physical inspection; they brought in a forensic expert to audit the Rust borrow checker logs and interrupt handlers to verify the triggers were benign. It turned into a very technical interview, just with higher stakes.
bigfatkitten 8mo ago
If anything, the Swiss authorities should be commended for their effective and proportionate response.
- reutinger 8mo ago
  100% agreed. They were incredibly professional. Once we moved past the initial 'threat assessment' phase, the officers and the forensic expert were fair, logical, and treated me well. The system worked exactly as it should for a suspicious package in a high-security zone.

5 points by reutinger 8mo ago

OP here. I literally just got released from 13 hours in a Swiss holding cell because this prototype looked like a bomb to the WEF police. To get released, I had to walk a forensic expert ('Chris') through this codebase line-by-line. He didn't care about the pitch; he audited the Rust borrow checker logs, the specific hardware interrupts, and the encryption implementation to prove it wasn't a trigger mechanism. It was the most aggressive code audit of my life. Happy to answer questions about the stack, the 'vibe coding' workflow I used to build it, or the Swiss prison lasagna."

steveklabnik 8mo ago
What are the “borrow checker logs” in this context?
- reutinger 8mo ago
  Hi Steve- honored to see you here! (I’m practically using your book to reverse-engineer what the AI wrote ). To be precise with my terminology: I showed the forensic expert the terminal history and compiler output in my VS Code/Cursor logs. Because I was 'vibe coding' with LLMs, I had a long scrollback of cargo build failing repeatedly with ownership/borrow errors. 'Chris' (the forensic expert) reviewed that timestamped history to verify that I was genuinely struggling to compile a harmless display driver in a hotel room that morning, rather than deploying a pre-compiled malicious payload. His logic was essentially: 'A terrorist brings a clean binary. A developer brings a terminal full of red text.' The broken build state was my alibi.
  - steveklabnik 8mo ago
    Ah, that makes sense, I was just confused because I don't think of the borrow checker as producing logs, but the terminal output is a great thing to show someone, yeah.

KomoD 8mo ago

So it wasn't really the firmware but the hardware that they thought looked suspicious and the fact that you placed a black box in a hotel restaurant and walked away. Especially suspicious since WEF guests were staying there. Thread for those who don't have an account: https://xcancel.com/s_heyneman/status/2014519007244656652 https://xcancel.com/s_heyneman/status/2014519007244656652

ggm 8mo ago
Based on what this looks like, I don't really feel surprised at the outcome. Based on what security is meant to do, Likewise. Based on the lack of (apparent) self awareness of the author, I think I'd expect a little better of somebody using a device as a pitch-deck to the wealthy in a location of heightened security. Is it security pantomime? yes. What did the OP expect? Is the OP really as naieve as they are saying? Was this not forseen/forseeable? Being wise after the event means being wise. Does anyone else reading this think the OP was not wise?
- defrost 8mo ago
  It's pretty straightforward, if it looks like a bomb, it gets treated like it might be a bomb. If it looks like Osama bin Laden attending a War on Terror summit ... they'll wave it right through. * https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2020/jan/20/how-the-chaser-invaded-apec-a-small-camera-was-secreted-behind-his-scrotum https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2020/jan/20/how-the... Not an especially wise move if unintended, and a precarious risk if intended fpr the drama. I'm thinking my personal best time getting grilled over a suspected security issue runs to 36 hours or so .. hard to tell in retrospect, the US TLA bods do like their blinken lights and screeching music to mess with peoples internal clocks.
  - reutinger 8mo ago
    36 hours? You win. I bow to the master. You are absolutely right about the optics (and the blinkin' lights). The forensic expert made the same point—unintended drama is still drama. I definitely didn't aim for this (just wanted to demo the hardware), but once the process started, I had to respect the thoroughness. Their protocols are no joke.

1970-01-01 8mo ago

No props. You can't do that. It looks like a bomb. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Mohamed_clock_incident https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmed_Mohamed_clock_incident

reutinger 8mo ago
Fair point on the optics. In hindsight, clear casing would have been the smart play for 2026. That said, the scrutiny shifted quickly from the 'black box' visual to the actual tech. It wasn't just a physical inspection; they brought in a forensic expert to audit the Rust borrow checker logs and interrupt handlers to verify the triggers were benign. It turned into a very technical interview, just with higher stakes.

bigfatkitten 8mo ago

If anything, the Swiss authorities should be commended for their effective and proportionate response.

reutinger 8mo ago
100% agreed. They were incredibly professional. Once we moved past the initial 'threat assessment' phase, the officers and the forensic expert were fair, logical, and treated me well. The system worked exactly as it should for a suspicious package in a high-security zone.