Standort: fm4.ORF.at / Meldung: "Today's Webtip: Backdoors in Bios"

Dave Dempsey

Dave digs the Dirt, webtips, IT-memes and other online geekery. Also as Podcast.

30. 12. 2013 - 11:42

Today's Webtip: Backdoors in Bios

Jacob Applebaum tells us about the toolbox used by the NSA. Invest in Aluminum foil.

As a fan of Cyberpunk, I've always felt a bit uneasy about the genre. People have a tendency to read science fiction and decide they need to make it so. Which is pretty cool when you think of stuff like communcators, tricorders and transporters, but gets to be a bit of a problem when you are dealing with stories of a dystopian online future and all of the nifty surveillance and entry tools that entails.

The Snowden documents have left me feeling like we are hurtling toward a Snowcrash, and the most recent release of information reads like a black-hats wishlist to Santa Claus.

Monitor cables that can transmit the screen to a remote viewer, custom bios, fancy USB cables and backdoors everywhere...

Tinfoil hats might be useless, but trusting nothing and living in a faraday cage is starting to seem like a good idea.

www.spiegel.de