badBIOS: A geeky horror story.

[cuttime]

I really wish I knew enough to make firm decisions about this. If it was April 1st, case closed. October 31st...dunno.

http://arstechnica.com/security/2013/10 ... s-airgaps/

[billf]

There's another discussion of it here:

http://it.slashdot.org/story/13/11/01/0 ... ommunicate

[Shooshie]

Creepy! Scary!

I just wanna move out to the boonies and get off-grid, making music the rest of my life with what I've got. Heck with all this connectivity if it means viruses that are smarter than WE are.



Shoosh

[MIDI Life Crisis]

I'm skeptical. This is the kicker:

"...Strangest of all was the ability of infected machines to transmit small amounts of network data with other infected machines even when their power cords and Ethernet cables were unplugged and their Wi-Fi and Bluetooth cards were removed."

Seriously? And how is THAT possible? It's not.

Regardless of the publications reputation and the documentation I thinks it's bullsh••.

[bayswater]

Seriously? And how is THAT possible? It's not.

Agree. Likely it's a "War Of The Worlds" hoax perpetrated on or by the authors.

[MIDI Life Crisis]

Happy Halloween.

[cuttime]

I'm skeptical. This is the kicker:

"...Strangest of all was the ability of infected machines to transmit small amounts of network data with other infected machines even when their power cords and Ethernet cables were unplugged and their Wi-Fi and Bluetooth cards were removed."

Seriously? And how is THAT possible? It's not.

Regardless of the publications reputation and the documentation I thinks it's bullsh••.

In one of the articles they made it clear that one of the computers was on battery power. Believe me, I want this to be B.S.

[MIDI Life Crisis]

So how did the virus jump from machine to machine if the other machines were completely unplugged and powered off?

It's bullpucky alright. But I'm sure, assuming it's not intended as a prank, that someone will develop a software app you can buy to fix it. Probably some 14 year old in Russia with too much time on his hands and laughing his ass off.

[mikehalloran]

Seriously, someone left it on a toilet seat.

[Shooshie]

So how did the virus jump from machine to machine if the other machines were completely unplugged and powered off?

That was my first reaction, too, but then I realized they were talking about laptops. The power cord was removed, meaning that no surreptitious data signals could be transmitted via the electric supply. (as in, tapping into the electric line outside) It did not say the units were turned off. Just that their cords were removed. They had no physical contact with any kind of network.

I'd love for it to be fake. Best consider it as possible, then figure out what we'd do about it if it turned out to be real, and if that kind of attack became common.

If your machine is emitting ultrasonic data, then it would show up on a sound meter somewhere. So… why didn't these guys get out their meters and start monitoring it? There are definitely loose ends to the story, but it's presented as truth, as a warning, so best we heed the warning at least in theory. Then wait for verification from others out there studying the same things.

Shooshie

[MIDI Life Crisis]

I'll start listening when they start filling in some of those holes. Oct 31 as the date on the story doesn't help my optimism about it's authenticity.

It was also the 75th anniversary of the infamous War of the World's broadcast... coincidence? I don't think so.

"Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears for 521 minutes and 15 seconds..."

~ Orson Wells.

[NazRat]

The big flaw in the ultra high frequency thing is that the laptop being infected would have to already have that network protocol installed and functional in order to receive and understand it. So, either it was programmed from the factory that way or it's already been partially infected by some other method, i.e. USB stick or some other firmware source on other devices (mostly sourced in China for all the conspiracy fans). Who knows, maybe the NSA has a back door into all of our devices (more conspiracy)? Could be Snowden's last big reveal. Oh well . . .

[bayswater]

Foil hats on.

[MIDI Life Crisis]

Foil hats on, oh Captain Video!

[NazRat]

I know this thread is old, but maybe time to take the foil hats off.

http://www.techspot.com/news/57591-rese ... sight.html

http://www.informationweek.com/mobile/m ... id/1297707?