__/ [ [H]omer ] on Saturday 07 October 2006 23:32 \__
> [H]omer wrote:
>> Roy Schestowitz wrote:
>>> Endpoint Security Alert! USB Switchblade - Tool for stealing Windows
>>> passwords, history and more
>>>
>>> ,----[ Quote ]
>>> | USB Switchblade is the outcome of community project to merge various
>>> | tools and techniques that take advantage of various Microsoft Windows
>>> | security vulnerabilities, the majority of which are related to USB
>>> | ports.
>>> `----
>>
>> Here's the video:
>>
>> http://www.hak5.org/episodes/
>>
>> Very entertaining ... and enlightening.
>
> Having watched the whole episode, this struck me as quite poignant:
>
> .----
> | Darren: I run as Admin on Windows
> |
> | Wess: I do as well, so does most of the populace.
> |
> | Darren: It's different with Windows and UNIX, because in UNIX you
> | won't run as root. You can't get anything done in Windows ...
> |
> | Together: Unless you're Administrator.
> `----
>
> Windows: Hacked in 3 seconds.
Diebold (Windows CE): Hacked in 4 minutes.
Hardware Hacking a Voting Machine in 4 Minutes
,----[ Quote ]
| She has since demonstrated a successful penetration of the seals without
| breaking them ... all in under 4 minutes with no training or technical
| skills required.
|
| [...]
|
| It's perhaps worth noting that the open source voting system being
| developed by the Open Voting Consortium features a 100% reconciliation of
| every single paper ballot with an independent electronic record."
`----
http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/09/05/160251&from=rss
And a whole country sobs over a terrible presidency. Meanhile, Brasil won't
permit its election be hijacked by an O/S (binary blob) from up north...
E-Voting Raises New Questions in Brazil
,----[ Quote ]
| Some Brazilians are lobbying the tribunal to switch from Windows CE to
| an open-source operating system for the voting machines, since Microsoft
| Corp., citing trade secrecy, won't allow independent audits to make
| sure malicious programmers haven't inserted commands to "flip" votes
| from one candidate to another.
|
| [...]
|
| Fontoura confirmed that Brazil is considering a move away from
| crosoft's proprietary code -- "We are studying the possibility of using an
| open-source program like Linux in future elections. This would make the
| entire process much more transparent and far less expensive," he said.
`----
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/060929/brazil_electronic_voting.html?.v=2
Interesting audiocast (with Real option):
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6129761
|
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