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Can someone explain to me in laymen's terms what this does? It renders the motherboard inoperable? Kills the display? How do you recover from this if you ACCIDENTALLY unplug it?
So this is a "kill cord" in the meaning of a jetski, power boat, or treadmill where pulling out the kill cord triggers a fast but nondestructive stop.
Can someone explain to me in laymen's terms what this does? It renders the motherboard inoperable? Kills the display? How do you recover from this if you ACCIDENTALLY unplug it?
It's clever, I'll admit, but the name leaves more to be desired with a name like 'buskill'
Maybe a smartwatch reading the heart rate of the owner and noticing stimulation could trigger the same functionality as well.
Can someone explain to me in laymen's terms what this does? It renders the motherboard inoperable? Kills the display? How do you recover from this if you ACCIDENTALLY unplug it?
Not something most users likely need but I can imagine some TLAs being interested in something like this, as it looks pretty inexpensive to implement.
Archive link because the website is down: http://web.archive.org/web/20200102140351/https://tech.micha... I was expecting a "kill switch" destroying the computer, but that's just a thing that switch off your laptop when unplugged. I guess you could also do this with bluetooth, for example.
I'd be careful though, as you don't want any "misshaps". It's not likely worth going that far unless you're doing something very sensitive.
Maybe a smartwatch reading the heart rate of the owner and noticing stimulation could trigger the same functionality as well.
Archive link because the website is down: http://web.archive.org/web/20200102140351/https://tech.micha... I was expecting a "kill switch" destroying the computer, but that's just a thing that switch off your laptop when unplugged. I guess you could also do this with bluetooth, for example.
On Linux there is blueproximity [2] that can lock (and if you like, unlock) your computer based on the proximity of a bluetooth device. My personal experience is that Bluetooth is frustratingly unreliable, and this package was no exception. But it's there if you'd like to try it!
[1] https://www.rya.org.uk/knowledge-advice/safe-boating/look-af... [2] http://www.daniloaz.com/en/automatically-lock-unlock-your-sc...
First, it doesn’t solve for the scenario of person pointing a gun at you and telling you to access your top secret files for them. That will defeat most forms of security and so if physical access is a concern you probably shouldn’t be logging in at your local coffee shop.
Second, a thief who wants your computer for its monetary value isn’t interested in its contents. Your normal drive encryption and screen timeout restrictions have you covered there. They’re gonna wipe your computer, sell it, and move on.
Institutionally purchased hardware is often equipped with zero-touch provisioning (such as Apple Device Enrollment). These products can be bricked at the hardware level they moment they touch the Internet. They’ll need a new logic board, i.e. new soldered on storage, i.e. they’re not even necessarily worth stealing.
Third, the idea of a magnetic connector’s removal locking or bricking your computer seems awfully inconvenient. That’s gonna be constant false positives without a gain in security.
If you’ve got someone who is after you to obtain your secret company info and knows enough to cause mayhem, you’ve got much bigger problems than whether or not your screen is going to lock. They’re also probably going to use social engineering, targeted malware and spyware, not brute force physical access.
SilkRoad guy would of loved this :D
Ross Ulbricht, who was apprehended at a public library while logged in to various accounts. As I recall a plain clothes agent distracted him while others then tackled him. ("would've", not "would of")