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FBI director: Cover up your webcam

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Re: FBI director: Cover up your webcam

#281

Post by stinkytaco »

Bartweiss wrote: post #257
stinkytaco wrote: post #248

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you've created a strawman here. It's about risk assessment and ease of implementation. Taping the webcam is easy to do, effective and easy to undo. It protects against a real, not theoretical attack. It has meaningful value. Not using Windows 10 might also have meaningful value and protect against real, not theoretical attacks, but would be difficult to do or undo. I could also point out that you are more lik…

I mean, I think it's a worthwhile comment even granting this. When people are worrying about the computer scare of the moment, they tend not to realize that the threat surface is so massive that they're certainly, inevitably vulnerable somewhere . No security habit short of Ludditism was going to keep people safe from Heartbleed. And it does feel a little on the nose for Comey to be pushing a security 'story' that's…

In fairness, however, he wasn't "pushing the story". Indeed the irony is pointed out during the story.

I work at a public library and occasionally teach computer classes. In one we cover security, but it's infuriatingly difficult. When you're working with people who have trouble with the mouse, or even with basic literacy (I mean reading literacy, not computer), it's hard to explain "attack surfaces" or "the cloud". It usually comes down to:

1. Understand the difference between identity and security. 2. Update your software regularly. 3. Use different passwords for different services and write them down (the number of people who don't know their password because they have email on their phone is... too high). 4. Be aware of who you are giving information to and why. Do they need that information? Is what they are offering worth providing it.

It's hard to cover much more than that.

Re: FBI director: Cover up your webcam

#282

Post by throwaway13337 »

It's relatively common to have access to private security cameras. Some are even google indexed.

The software included relies on the users protect the web interface. Obviously, this is the vulnerability. Especially with things like default passwords.

Here's an article about it: http://www.networkworld.com/article/2844283/microsoft-subnet...

A lot of these cameras are controllable and have speakers.

People now do live video streams of pranking people through this means.

Pictures: http://imgur.com/a/0WImd

Re: FBI director: Cover up your webcam

#284

Post by matt_wulfeck »

zyngaro wrote: post #182
iceman99 wrote: post #172

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know someone whose camera and microphone were taken over. A window showed on her computer where the person watching her chatted with her and told her things that he only knew because he was watching her. It scared her to death and made her cry. Beyond blackmail, it is probably close to the psychological equivalent of a stranger just suddenly appearing in your home watching you. I think that every electronic camera…

Smartphones represent a bigger security risk in that regard. Front facing rear facing, mic all ones personal data, pictures and so on.

Remote code execution on a cell phone is thousands of times harder than a PC. If you have a RCE for the newest iOS software then there's people who are ready to pay you millions.

An up-to-date Nexus or iPhone is about the most secure thing you own.

Re: FBI director: Cover up your webcam

#285

Post by avaloneon »

deftnerd wrote: post #125
6t6t6t6 wrote: post #6

From all they ways I can be spied, the webcam is the one that concerns me the least. At the end, all they will see is a bearded man staring to the front. May they be able to see me naked? Well, probably, but I honestly don't think that they will make a lot of money by selling my naked pictures... My wife tells me that I still look good, but I suspect that she is being nice to me. What would scare more is that they ma…

It's gotten to the point where I only feel totally comfortable using machines I've hardened myself. My hardened laptop is an older Thinkpad laptop with LibreBoot to replace the BIOS, microphone and speakers and camera disconnected internally, removed the wireless cards, encrypted the partitions, and use Whonix as the OS. I've password protected the BIOS and it's set to boot only from the hard drive and I've also epox…

You might be interested in something like ORWL[1], which is arguably the most secure consumer PC I've ever heard of. It has tamper-resistant features, full disk encryption, and a secure co-processor which does things like disable the USB data paths when the system locks.

Admittedly, though, it's not a laptop.

As far as laptops go, the librem 13[2], with Qubes OS and coreboot would be a pretty good bet.

If you haven't already, definitely take a look at Qubes OS[3]. It offers security by compartmentalizing different workspaces in different vm's managed by Xen so, in theory, even a kernel exploit isn't getting very far into the system.

[1] https://www.crowdsupply.com/design-shift/orwl [2] https://puri.sm/librem-13/ [3] https://www.qubes-os.org

Re: FBI director: Cover up your webcam

#286

Post by tropo »

mafribe wrote: post #266
icantdrive55 wrote: post #226

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not just blackmail that I worry about. A hypothetical, ruthless hacker manages to install malware on a person's computer. Hell they could target certain zip codes. All the information is on the Internet. Hell, they could get a picture of your home. (By the way, Google will blure out you home, if you ask. It tends to reappear, although they claim its permanent. If your house has been sold recently, a thief/crimin…

This is all true, but wouldn't somebody who has the technical skills to pull this all of, be able to pull in a legal income far in excess of what burglary is likely to yield?

A typical drug dealer would make more money working at McDonald's, so why don't they? People are weird.

Once you've been convicted of something, or even arrested really, you have few legal options to support yourself.

Re: FBI director: Cover up your webcam

#287

Post by dingo_bat »

Steuard wrote: post #39
dingo_bat wrote: post #3

I have never covered my Webcam because I trust the light to come on if the camera turns on. Is it possible to bypass that led?

In addition to the attacks that others have mentioned here, I've also heard folks comment previously on the possibility of turning on the camera very briefly, just long enough for a single still shot. If it was done fast enough, the brief flicker of the LED might not be noticeable. (Like you, I had always assumed that the power for the webcam was literally in series with the LED, so that disabling the LED would rende…

>I had always assumed that the power for the webcam was literally in series with the LED

If I were tasked with making a webcam circuit, I'd make sure the light and the sensor were always powered together. So I (naively) assumed that's how everyone would do it.

Re: FBI director: Cover up your webcam

#288

Post by PeCaN »

JadeNB wrote: post #242
fmueller wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's clearly a man.

> He's clearly a man. What is the point of this comment? Even if you had some way to know (EDIT: which you ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12506075 ) point out is the case), why should it matter, especially since no-one else in this thread seems to have brought up gender?

Using “them” when you already clearly know the gender is bad style stemming from political-correctness zealots.

Re: FBI director: Cover up your webcam

#289

Post by dragonwriter »

tropo wrote: post #286
mafribe wrote: post #266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is all true, but wouldn't somebody who has the technical skills to pull this all of, be able to pull in a legal income far in excess of what burglary is likely to yield?

A typical drug dealer would make more money working at McDonald's, so why don't they? People are weird. Once you've been convicted of something, or even arrested really, you have few legal options to support yourself.

> A typical drug dealer would make more money working at McDonald's, so why don't they?

I think a substantial share of those drug dealers who aren't working formal-economy jobs as well are also drug addicts that would not be able to keep such jobs particularly well even if they weren't drug dealers, and/or convicts that wouldn't be likely to be offered such jobs if they chose to pursue them.

Re: FBI director: Cover up your webcam

#290

Post by badwolf »

Larrikin wrote: post #47
6t6t6t6 wrote: post #6

From all they ways I can be spied, the webcam is the one that concerns me the least. At the end, all they will see is a bearded man staring to the front. May they be able to see me naked? Well, probably, but I honestly don't think that they will make a lot of money by selling my naked pictures... My wife tells me that I still look good, but I suspect that she is being nice to me. What would scare more is that they ma…

I know that what the webcam captures is probably the least important thing a hacker can get but I do it because it is visible. Protecting your privacy should NOT be weird and a sticker over your webcam is a very visible way of showing that to the public. When people ask why I do it, its a good opportunity to educate them on the capabilities of the US government, other nation-state actors, and hackers in general. If t…

Ditto this. I use the EFF webcam stickers. Probably nobody cares about watching my bearded face staring at a computer, true. To me though, it's a visible and constant reminder to keep privacy/security in the front of my mind.
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