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Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
There's long been much handwringing around Halloween around the prospect of pins, needles and razor blades being hidden in candy and passed out to children. On the very rare occasion this does happen, the outcome is normally little more than some superficial cuts. However, for 2019, [MG] has developed an altogether different surreptitious payload to be delivered to trick or treaters.
Consisting of a small USB device named DemonSeed, it's a HID attack gadget in the genre of the BadUSB devices we've seen previously. When plugged in, the unit emulates a USB keyboard and can be programmed to enter whatever keystrokes are necessary to take over the machine or exfiltrate data. Files are available on Github for those looking to replicate the device.
The trick here is in the delivery. [MG] has produced a large quantity of these small devices, packaging them in anti-static wrappers. The wrappers contain a note instructing children to insert them into their parent's work computers to access "game codes", and to share them with their friends while hiding them from adults.
The idea of children brazenly plugging hostile USB devices into important computers is enough to make any IT manager's head spin, though we suspect [MG] doesn't actually intend to deploy these devices in anger. It serves as a great warning about the potential danger of such an attack, however. Stay sharp, and keep your office door locked this October 31st!
-- submitted from IRC
(Score: 2) by Hartree on Monday November 04 2019, @12:20AM (5 children)
If they can read the wrapper that tells them to plug it in, they are old enough that a wise parent might have taught them some internet/computer basics. Like never plug in a USB thing that you find or someone gives you. It's on the same order as don't click on things emails you weren't expecting. And foreign princes wanting you to help them transfer lots of money are neither princes nor is there any money.
Not to say that this will stop them (it certainly doesn't stop all adults) but at least it's some defense.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 04 2019, @01:32AM (2 children)
> wise parent
Isn't that like cognitive dissonance like military intelligence?
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Hartree on Monday November 04 2019, @02:03AM (1 child)
Let's not go too far. I'll agree that when I was 13, my father was the stupidest man on earth.
But, it was amazing how much brighter he got by the time I reached my 20s.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Monday November 04 2019, @02:57AM
Mine was kind of slow. It took him until almost my thirties to know his ass from a hole in the ground.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 04 2019, @08:27AM (1 child)
Considering IT has a hard enough time teaching full-grown adults not to do stupid crap like that, good luck teaching the 5-year-olds of the world.
(Score: 2) by barbara hudson on Saturday November 09 2019, @09:41PM
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