Most large networks I've been to that care about security would notice a machine hardwired into their network that wasn't pre-approved based off the mac address of the ethernet interface alone. They'd be able to locate it just by the wirepath.<br>
<br>Wireless is a different issue, but most internal wireless is configured to only allow vpn traffic to their own gateway... so again blocked.<br><br>=/ <br><br>But I suppose in more lax environments it might be easy to cause damage. But it's not like this tech hasn't been around for near 10 years now.<br>
<br>-Matt<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Mon, Feb 28, 2011 at 10:06 AM, Thomas Lord <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:lord@emf.net">lord@emf.net</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); padding-left: 1ex;">
Hacker News brought an interesting link today:<br>
<br>
<a href="http://blog.andrewcantino.com/post/3565673304/why-plug-computers-are-a-security-nightmare" target="_blank">http://blog.andrewcantino.com/post/3565673304/why-plug-computers-are-a-security-nightmare</a><br>
<br>
The gist is that if blackhat hackers can penetrate your<br>
environment and stealthily install some plug computers -<br>
loaded with suitable software - those bugs would be<br>
hard not notice, could sniff your wireless traffic (or,<br>
if connected, your network), and can stealthily move that<br>
information back towards the blackhat mothership.<br>
<br>
Which is nothing new. People have known about that kind<br>
of thing of years. Trends in plug computing make the<br>
threat cheaper to execute and easier to conceal - that's<br>
the main thing.<br>
<br>
After reading that I was thinking what this meant<br>
to Freedombox. I came up with two items:<br>
<br>
1. The network hardening and stealth communications<br>
ambitions of FreedomBox might *also* be a boon to<br>
blackhat applications. That might give some people<br>
and organizations incentive to interfere with or<br>
corrupt those aspects of FreedomBox development.<br>
<br>
2. If it is born out that such features are an important<br>
new security threat, presumably there will be investment<br>
in R&D to create and sell counter-measures to FreedomBox-style<br>
mesh networking, tunneling, etc.<br>
<br>
To be clear: I don't see anything that "needs to be done"<br>
in response to these speculated problems other than,<br>
perhaps, to keep them in the back of our minds.<br>
<br>
-t<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
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</blockquote></div><br>