The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
1–10 of 41 posts
Re: The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
#2I upvoted, because it's a good thing to be aware of, but I don't think you can call this a "major" security risk. It's not like you're going to see a million people get attacked by a single charger cable out on the internet.
If you're someone who has a lot of really sensitive data on your laptop, sure. But, then, most of those people are probably not all that interested in the MacBook, and at any rate they should already be pretty cautious about physical access to the sensitive machine.
Re: The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
#3The article (especially the headline) implies that the new Macbook is somehow more at risk because of its reliance on one USB port. But if the root of the problem is USB more generally, wouldn't the only "secure" design preclude the inclusion of any USB ports whatsoever? My issue with the article is that by singling out the Macbook (due to its single port) they are not actually contributing any useful information back to the consumer about its potential security. If I'm missing something, I would appreciate clarification.
Re: The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
#4This is written like it is a novel situation. Smart phones have had this problem almost since inception.
Would be nice to see a hardware switch to deactivate the pins that aren't needed for power.
Re: The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
#5USB Type C does not support DMA as the article states. I think there might be some confusion on the attack vector here. BadUSB requires cooperation from the OS/BIOS/a driver.
Re: The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
#6The article (especially the headline) implies that the new Macbook is somehow more at risk because of its reliance on one USB port. But if the root of the problem is USB more generally, wouldn't the only "secure" design preclude the inclusion of any USB ports whatsoever? My issue with the article is that by singling out the Macbook (due to its single port) they are not actually contributing any useful information bac…
If there is a USB port and a power port a super parinoid person could never use the USB port, or even fill it with glue. Not an option here.
This is also talking about how combining them also allows for the potential of charger based attacks, a charger is something that absolutely has to be plugged in at some point.
Re: The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
#7This is a mostly useless article. Every computer with USB ports has this problem. If you want to use it as, you know, a computer, you're probably gonna need to plug some stuff into it at one time.
You could make the argument that now that it has one port, it's easier to secure because you only have to secure one side of the computer instead of two.
Re: The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
#8The article (especially the headline) implies that the new Macbook is somehow more at risk because of its reliance on one USB port. But if the root of the problem is USB more generally, wouldn't the only "secure" design preclude the inclusion of any USB ports whatsoever? My issue with the article is that by singling out the Macbook (due to its single port) they are not actually contributing any useful information bac…
If there is a USB port and a power port a super parinoid person could never use the USB port, or even fill it with glue. Not an option here. This is also talking about how combining them also allows for the potential of charger based attacks, a charger is something that absolutely has to be plugged in at some point.
I guess the paranoid user can use an usb condom if so.
Re: The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
#9The article (especially the headline) implies that the new Macbook is somehow more at risk because of its reliance on one USB port. But if the root of the problem is USB more generally, wouldn't the only "secure" design preclude the inclusion of any USB ports whatsoever? My issue with the article is that by singling out the Macbook (due to its single port) they are not actually contributing any useful information bac…
Well, the main difference is that even just to charge your laptop you'll need to plug in a USB plug - and people share laptop chargers a lot.
Agree that the article is largely a fuss over nothing, though.
Re: The new MacBook's single port comes with a security risk
#10This is written like it is a novel situation. Smart phones have had this problem almost since inception. Would be nice to see a hardware switch to deactivate the pins that aren't needed for power.
That switch sounds like a tech' support nightmare. Even WiFi switches are a massive PITA that are almost more trouble than they're worth.
I'd suggest that if people want safe USB that they just buy a USB "condom" (i.e. an adapter that goes between the power and port, and disconnects the data wires).
Although does USB-C use any of the data pins to determine if it is safe to transmit power? I just ask because Apple's USB implementation sends different amount of power based on how the device responds across several non-power related pins.