The Edge of I-Hacked

So if you have not heard about Square yet, it is a really good idea enabling pretty much everyone the ability to take credit cards. It is a small device (about the size of a headphone splitter) that connects to your smartphone and allows you to swipe cards for payments.

square payment

So these devices have some amazing potential. Imagine not having to carry cash ever again. Want to pay a street vendor? Swipe. Pay your buddy back for beers last night.. Swipe. You get the point.

However, I have some questions about the security of these devices. Sure, we can all scoff at the apparent lack of security people are already doing with these, sense they are uploading 1080p videos of them swiping their cards on youtube (I will let you figure out why 1080p + creditcards + pause + photoshop = disaster for that poor soul)

But I am also curious on the transmission path and residual “noise”. Anyone who has fired up Karmetasploit knows that iphones are pretty easy prey — they love connecting to any wifi spot they come across. I wonder what safeguards are put in place to stop me from “middling” them?

Hey @square guys, send me a couple of squares — I would love to do a free security audit of them. I think you got a great product, I would love to help make it better (secured). Feel free to contact me on twitter!

via Social Hacking.

Many security researchers are familiar with BeEF, a browser exploitation framework by Wade Alcorn. In short, BeEF is a program that brings together various types of code for taking advantage of known vulnerabilities in web browsers. If a target computer loads a certain bit of code within a web page, that code connects to a server control panel which can then execute certain attacks against the “zombie” machine.After noting potential security issues with the gadgets in Google Wave, I set about to finally setup a BeEF testbed and see if Google Wave was as capable a platform for malware delivery as I suspected.

via HackZine.com.

This site began with a 2008 crowbox experiment, which turned nature’s pests into practical players in society by autonomously training crows to conduct mutually beneficial behaviours with humans.

I did the initial experiment in 2008 in an attempt to teach crows how to live more purposefully for man, so that man would not annihilate the species.

At the time, I taught some captive crows, remotely, through basic operant conditioning, to feed coins into a vending machine so they could get peanuts. The idea is that a group of wild crows would teach other crows, including their offspring, to find the coins and put them into the vending machine to get peanuts. For this experiment, I received coverage all over the globe – from the New York Times, TED.com, Gizmodo and even Oprah covered the experiment!

But now – it’s your turn. The crowbox experiment is open source and this site exists to let the whole world know how to make a crow machine and then share the results.

Download the files, post some questions in the forums, add a page or three to the wiki. The open source crowbox experiment is still in beta, but together we can build it into something great.

Read about how the crowbox works, and see the story of how this whole thing began (below)!

Computer Security News

via SPOOFEM.COM releases beta version of desktop application.

Caller ID spoofing service provider SPOOFEM.COM announced on Monday the release of its free desktop application , version 1.B . The company said the SDA, available at http://www.spoofem.com, provides consumers with easy access to all of the services that are available on SPOOFEM.COM, including caller-id spoofing, spoofing text and e-mail messages,

via Introduction to Metasploit Unleashed.

Free MetaSploit Class — YEA!

This is it! After months of hard work, we are finally ready to present the free version of our online course – Metasploit Unleashed – Mastering the Framework. This resource will be a living, breathing Metasploit documentation entity. We will keep on updating and adding new modules and chapters as the MSF evolves.

This course has be written in a manner to encompass not just the front end “user” aspects of the framework, but rather give you an introduction to the capabilities that Metasploit provides. We aim to give you an in depth look into the many features of the MSF, and provide you with the skill and confidence to utilize this amazing tool to its utmost capabilities.

Here we will try to sort out all the news, blogs, tools and more. Check back for updates and comment any findings.

Videos:
Defcon 17 Awards Ceremony **Check out I-Hacked/RBCP @ 01:04:56**
Interview Nathan Hamiel and Shawn Moyer on hacking Web 2.0
Quadrotor UAV at Defcon 17
Apple keyboard with evil firmware can root any computer
hacking-defcon-2009-badge
video of KreiosC2
Hacking the iPhone
Defcon Video by Ax0n

Tools/Slides:
dnsTTrap
ucsniff
ippon
Defcon_Oracle_The_Making_of_the_2nd_sql_injection_worm
Foca Online
Tactical Fingerprinting using Foca
maltego-firefox
CSRF – Yeah, It Still Works
KreiosC2
Prank o Matic

Photos:
vissago
stits -some NSFW-
epitti

Music:
BlackBall Defcon 17- up’D by Great Scott

Misc/Blog:
Black Hat USA 2009 Media Archives
Ax0n’s DefCon 17 Wrap-Up
RBCP’s Blog on Defcon
DEFCON 0×11 Post-Mortem

News:
Feds at DefCon Alarmed After RFIDs Scanned
Researchers offer tools for eavesdropping and video hijacking
Danger from automatic updates
Hanging with hackers can make you paranoid
Rio hotel in Las Vegas responds to claims over malicious ATMs
Malicious ATM Catches Hackers
iPhone attacked by SMS – Danger!

Ya I know it’s the same text as last year, we are tired… The difference is….

THIS YEAR THEY EXIST.

Ok — so defcon isnt exactly the most expensive con there is.. In fact, it is quite a steal at $120. But sometimes hackers are poor. Sometimes the difference is having beer and no badge, or a badge and no beer. Both are a bad situation.

So let me show you how to get into Defcon for a measly $15! (That still leaves you some scratch for BEER!) It is time to introduce this years I-Hacked T-Shirt.

Not only will you get into Defcon for free (minus the cost of the tshirt of course) but you will have access to areas most “Humans” simply wont! Imagine hob-knobbing in the goon’s private skybox! Imagine finding the talk that you are most interested in, COMPLETELY FULL… With a normal badge you would be out of luck, but using the 2009 Defcon17 I-Hacked shirt, you can tell some sad sorry sap to get the hell out of your seat, because you are a goon and they have to listen to you! And it is completely legal!

How were we able to do this? Simple, We were able to (easily I might add) obtain the details of the badges early by social engineering the company that Joe Grand used for production. Not only did they provide the final proofs back to us, but actually sent us some PHYSICAL SAMPLES! (wh000000t!)

We took those proofs and produced a T-Shirt that we feel captures the “hacker spirit”. This limited edition 2009 Defcon17 I-Hacked tshirt, which is SURE to be “THE” topic of DC17 and making it to DEFCON LORE can be had for only 15 bucks.

All proceeds will go to providing beer to those who are wearing the shirts.

via Boing Boing Gadgets

Apple says it’s had “pretty interesting ideas” for a Mac netbook, but it’s everyday users who’ve already taken action. Most of the popular netbooks can run OS X, but there are plenty of caveats: non-functioning components which lack drivers, need to be replaced, or which simply can’t be gotten working at all.

The short answer: get a HP Mini 1000 or a Dell Mini 9/Vostro A90.

via BackTrack Information Security Distribution » Metasploit Unleashed – Mastering the Framework.

The course will be presented in the usual “Offensive Security” online format pdf + videos and is designed to surprise even experienced MSF users.

The PDF guide along with offline labs for the course will be free of charge. We are working with Metasploit.com and Hackers for Charity to put all proceeds from this course towards feeding children in Kenya and Uganda. The course videos will be available for a small fee. All proceeds will be donated to Hackers for Charity.

This course opens up a new Metasploit Framework Certification track – the OSMP, Offensive Security Metasploit Professional. The certification exam will be based on hands-on exercises requiring the student to prove they have mastered the MSF in all aspects. The Certification will only be available to those who purchase the videos – our way of encouraging donations to HFC. Remember – all proceeds go towards a very good cause.

The course is almost ready and we expect a public release around late August, 2009.

via hackersforcharity.org

The bottom line is PayPal has frozen my assets (which aren’t theirs.. how can they do this?) including all the support money my family is relying on.

I’ve spent hours on the phone (on hold) to PayPal at approximately 30 cents a minute to try to get this resolved only to be told to use email. I’m considering legal action over this.

HFC is at a complete standstill. We can not order shirts for the conference. Subscriptions are bouncing. Informer is down. Subscribers are (rightly) pissed because they don’t have what they’ve paid for. I can’t order the items for the DEFCON auction. There are too many problems to list here. The biggest is that PayPal has locked down my family’s survival money.

I have no clue what to do at this point.

Does the EFF have any leverage? I can’t tell you how tempted I am to just turn to the dark side here and…

Paypal are you out there? Help Johnny & his good cause out!