The physical components of an IT system.
17
votes
6answers
3k views
How can I reliably erase all information on a hard drive?
As storage technologies change over time, using different encodings and remappings to deal with sector errors, the best way to permanently erase/wipe/shred data changes also.
Methods for flash drives ...
8
votes
2answers
524 views
Protecting cellphones from USB attacks (a.k.a. Juice Jacking)
We have several smartphone with encrypted data on them (BES, iPhone, Android) and want to prevent an unauthorized person from downloading information from the device via USB.
The visual assumption ...
6
votes
3answers
782 views
SSD (Flash Memory) security when data is encrypted in place
I'm surveying current techniques on flash memory security. I've learned that the non-in-place update of flash memories prevent us from adapting the same encryption techniques that we used on hard ...
13
votes
2answers
2k views
Wireless keyboard sniffing risk
I've just acquired a wireless keyboard/mouse combo (Microsoft Wireless Desktop 3000). Only after having plugged it in did it get me thinking. How susceptible are those kind of setups to sniffing? Are ...
10
votes
2answers
921 views
Tamper-proof BIOS password & settings storage with Trusted Platform Module?
In the olden days, one could trivially bypass BIOS passwords on most PCs by removing the BIOS battery and clearing the CMOS.
My question is: On modern PCs equipped with a Trusted Platform Module ...
8
votes
2answers
327 views
How to implement secure device identification in a for-pay wifi router to prevent usage fraud?
After reading this question about how for-pay wifi routers identify specific devices it got me thinking about what a secure alternative might be. I know that certain research has focused on ...
58
votes
9answers
8k views
What would one need to do in order to hijack a satellite?
I realise this borders on sci-fi, but there's been some interesting demonstrations regarding security of various satellites.
What would be required to hack a satellite (in general terms, any hack ...
35
votes
5answers
5k views
How do you destroy an old hard drive?
How do you destroy an old hard drive? To be clear, unlike questions Secure hard drive disposal: How to erase confidential information and How can I reliably erase all information on a hard drive? I do ...
8
votes
2answers
10k views
Can wiped SSD data be recovered?
I was reading another post on destroying IDE drives, and how you could remove data, wipe it, or just destroy the drive. The removed data would still be there in some state, although not easily ...
10
votes
6answers
599 views
Best method of retiring hard drives
What are some typical ways you guys retire hard drives? We have a hard drive that won't mount anymore (makes clicking sounds when it tries to mount). The data on it isn't necessarily sensitive (no ...
2
votes
1answer
356 views
Is hardware based disk encryption more secure that software based?
As a spin-off of my question on "Advice on buying an encrypted disk" -- and in an effort to address the question "how is hardware based disk encryption better?" -- I've started a new question.
My ...
6
votes
4answers
2k views
How to disable Firewire in OpenBSD/Linux to prevent attacks through Firewire?
Since Firewire lacks security, allowing a plugged-in device to access host memory, it's a good thing to fully disable it. If we're not using the BIOS to disable the Firewire port then how could we do ...
5
votes
3answers
184 views
Sourcing hardware that is least likely to contain backdoors
I understand that CPU silicon (for example) is scrutinized for backdoors but there are other aspects of a computer system that may "leak data" to the outside world unbeknownst to the owner regardless ...
12
votes
6answers
618 views
How can the impact of cold boot attacks be minimized?
Short of powering down and maintaining physical security for sufficient time, what are effective strategies for keeping keys from being disclosed by cold-boot attacks, and can anything be done without ...
8
votes
3answers
441 views
OWASP Top 10 style security guide for implementation in hardware devices
I've seen OWASP Top 10 guides for web apps, native apps, etc., but never anything for embedded systems or hardware devices. These usually involve microcontrollers (e.g. Atmega / PIC) or small ...
8
votes
5answers
1k views
What is the benefit with using encrypted RAM Memory?
I sometimes hear that encryption is used for the RAM Memory, but I don't really understand why this is needed.
Why is RAM Memory needed to be encrypted? and is this done by the hardware, the ...
8
votes
4answers
337 views
Best practices for physically securing a notebook
If the user knows that other people will repeatedly have physical access to her notebook - running Linux - while she is absent, and that there is no way around this, what are best practices for ...
6
votes
3answers
278 views
Possible to prevent Juice Jacking by only connecting USB pins 1 & 4?
According to this accepted answer, there is no phone on the market today that is immune from "Juice Jacking"*. I think an easy way to mitigate this threat is to have a filter that blocks USB pins 2 ...
5
votes
3answers
1k views
Recover the prior contents of RAM from a turned-off PC?
I've heard that if your PC is turned off, then an attacker can recover the RAM from the last session. I find this hard to believe. How could it be done?
2
votes
2answers
211 views
Literature about IT security from a hardware standpoint
Can you point me to any book, blog, paper, anything about IT security on the lowest possible level (hardware)?
I'm primary interested in the motherboard, CPU & GPU, however, if you know any good ...
6
votes
2answers
562 views
Do Flash memory (SSD) architecture impacts encryption techniques?
I'm working on encryption techniques on SSD's and my question is: does the erase before write architecture of SSD's has anything to do with the encryption technique?
What are the problems I might ...
5
votes
2answers
338 views
WORM media types
Why types of media are Write Once Read Many (WORM) other than CD-R, and DVD-R, say, something in the 100GB range?
Are there such devices?
What would it take to read them?
Are the devices like this ...
5
votes
3answers
475 views
Is it possible to make one processor look like another?
(aka) Is it possible to hack CPUID instruction or BIOS to make it show wrong CPU information?
Yesterday, I was having a chat with computer sales guy. He is little close to me. During the conversation ...
5
votes
2answers
587 views
Secure hard drive disposal: How to erase confidential information
When it comes to disposing of hardware that may contain PII, confidential, or other sensitive material, how do you determine what needs special handling? What process do you use?
I'd like to expand ...
4
votes
2answers
191 views
How is hibernation supported, on machines with UEFI Secure Boot?
I've been learning about UEFI Secure Boot, which attempts to prevent "bootkits" by locking down the boot process so that only signed bootloaders and kernels can be loaded.
Hibernation seems like a ...
4
votes
2answers
269 views
Are there volatile memory chips which dont retain data after power off?
It was demonstrated that dram modules can retain information up to 10 min after power off in certain conditions. My question - are there memory types which will retain data 10 sec at max even if being ...
