USB Killer 2.0(usbkill.com) |
USB Killer 2.0(usbkill.com) |
Hardware designers of public machines…
…with exposed USB ports should ensure that their systems resist electrical attacks.
Quote from the front page: "If you use a charger or USB port that is not your own - the device can steal your data while you are charging. Using a USB Kill Shield will prevent devices from having access to your data."
This isn't the case of a gate that fails open. This is the case of a gate that gets hit by a rocket launcher, which blows the gate open and destroys the datacenter behind it.
What's next. A taser with an HDMI connector?
Something like this (or even a USB to Lightning charger cable):
https://www.amazon.com/HIOTECH®-Adapter-Lightning-Female-iPh...
Would this destroy the Lightning controller in the adapter/cable, or would it work to destroy the iPhone?
"Hardware designers of public machines should have a USB Kill to test their products: photo booths, copy machines, airline entertainment systems, ticket terminals, etc - anything with exposed USB ports should ensure that their systems resist electrical attacks."
Seems like a form of hardware pentesting to me, so for security experts and hardware designers, this looks like a pretty useful tool. :)
I am going to research for lockable USB dongles you can insert and remove only with a key.
I imagine that the USB PHY of a well designed system exposed to this attack will not survive, but the entire system won't be so easily nerfed either.
I'm not talking about the host, I'm talking about the gates. I've seen a laptop bricked because it got the wrong voltage on the USB pins (I've still got it; motherboard SMT fuse blew and I've not got round to replacing it). From a fire safety perspective, it makes perfect sense for gates to fail open (or undriven, so you can push them open manually) when their controller dies. If you can get to the USB port, that's a perfectly feasible route in.
You're in a coffee shop. Wouldn't the attackers just "accidentally" spill coffee on your laptop? Some laptops cope well with water from the top (over the keyboard) but not in the air vents.
The difference is deniability, you can always see that someone killed your laptop with coffee or smashed it with a hammer, with this you wouldn't know until you can examine the circuits.