Saturday, August 13, 2016

Security researchers are trying too hard?

There is a lot of research done about security these days. If you follow tech news daily, there is always an article about some new ways to hack a computer or your mobile device.

Personally, I'm not that paranoid about security issues. I do update my passwords regularly and I stay alert when someone is sending me an unknown link. I do share some data with Apple and Google as I consider that this is not such a terrible problem trying to improve their products.

Security researchers have found that by listening to the sounds of a hard drive, hackers can steal your passwords and sensitive data...

http://www.techspot.com/news/65959-sounds-hard-drive-makes-can-used-steal-data.html

This is technically possible but so impractical to put in place. There are so many hoops to go thru that it is hard to consider this a security threat.

Basically, anything that can produce a signal of some sort can be used o transmit sensitive information. My Pebble Time watch could be used to transmit data by flickering some pixels colour. Any smartphone could embed sensitive data while playing music in such a way that it is inaudible for the human ear.

Transmitting can be easy but there is a big catch: There must be a receiver listening. So you need to "infect" the transmitting device which can prove to be difficult. Then you have to find a way to receive the information. When there is proximity factor involved, such as a 6 feet range, it's hard to consider the issue as a major security concern.

Research is essential, but let's keep our paranoia to a reality level...


Patrick Balleux
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