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USB Killer

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Re: USB Killer

#31

Post by aeykie »

lawnchair_larry wrote: post #13
MichaelGG wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why? Sounds like a way to increase security awareness. Although, I suppose a huge blaring alarm might do just as well. Leave them around your office/parking lot and see who uses them. Then have a chat. Better they plug in a bad device you control vs one carrying a truly malicious payload. (Probably a good idea to attempt to phish employees, too.)

Yeah, and randomly hitting people in the head with a bat is a great way to increase concussion awareness, right?

Deciding to put a stranger-USB device in your computer is a thing you do, and decided to do. Getting hit in the head with a bat isn't.

Re: USB Killer

#32

Post by BorisMelnik »

petercooper wrote: post #28
caf wrote: post #24

It would be cool to create a version of this that just sounded a really, really loud siren. Then you could leave it lying around the office, and listen out for the bunnies.

Especially if it used capacitors or an onboard battery to keep the siren going when someone inevitably yanks it out quickly :)

and of course label it "boss name personal"

On that note, using it as a pentesting device could be interesting. Perhaps just use the "beep" so the auditor can see how many people trust putting anything into their PC, then at the end cite USB killer.

Re: USB Killer

#34

Post by ssalazar »

Springtime wrote: post #30
vanontom wrote: post #4

This is just one of many reasons why you should not ever stick unknown things in your healthy ports (or your healthy things in unknown ports). Not without protection. Safety first. But I'm a firm believer that people should be able to consent to this kind of behavior if they really wish to.

I've often wondered if there was some condom-like* attachment available that acted as a go-between for the USB port and a connected device that would prevent/mitigate some of the issues with sticking unknown devices into ports. * There is a device called a 'USB Condom' but it's only for charging purposes, and completely restricts data access.

There are USB opto-isolators, rated for various large voltages/wattages, which basically accomplish this.

Re: USB Killer

#35

Post by mindslight »

Animats wrote: post #27

Here are parts to design into your USB device to prevent that. http://www.mouser.com/applications/usb30_circuit_protection/ http://www.te.com/content/dam/te/global/english/products/Cir...

There are straight up isolators, like ADUM4160. For USB2, they're limited to 12mbit/sec though, because USB2 has a single bidirectional (terrible) data line.

Re: USB Killer

#36

Post by kinleyd »

witten wrote: post #11

I once encountered a computer that was the opposite of this; plug any USB device into it, and the device would never work again, even in another computer.

My computer seems to be doing that on a random basis. I think I should worry.

Re: USB Killer

#37

Post by junto »

Reminds me of a story I heard many years ago. UK power plugs have three prongs to include earth. If you rewire earth, live and neutral AND alter the plug wall socket to match, then all is well, but if someone steals your PC then plugs it in using a standard wall socket then ouch.

Re: USB Killer

#38

Post by jacquesm »

junto wrote: post #37

Reminds me of a story I heard many years ago. UK power plugs have three prongs to include earth. If you rewire earth, live and neutral AND alter the plug wall socket to match, then all is well, but if someone steals your PC then plugs it in using a standard wall socket then ouch.

Or, if you end up forgetting about it or your s.o. moves the laptop from your desk to the other side of the room...

Re: USB Killer

#39

Post by chrissnell »

caf wrote: post #24

It would be cool to create a version of this that just sounded a really, really loud siren. Then you could leave it lying around the office, and listen out for the bunnies.

Yours is the 2015 version of the 1980s-era DOS app that displayed a fake word processor UI with the top portion of a fake but intriguing letter visible. You would leave this app running and then leave for lunch. An office snoop would see the fake letter and want to read more, then press a key to scroll down, which would activate a siren sound on the PC speaker and display some silly "you're busted" message on the screen.

Re: USB Killer

#40

Post by xiaoma »

> "We can tell you exactly what happened when your candidates tried to implement a REST API. We can compare their performance against hundreds of other talented engineers (including your current employees) on the same task."

Dayum. tldr; if you like your job and you play this game, play to win

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