A $50 device and an app can easily steal your PC’s log-in

You’d think protecting your computer with a strong password can keep it safe, but apparently, all it takes to steal your log-in credentials is a $50 piece of hardware and an app. According to R5 Industries principal security engineer Rob Fuller, he was able to pilfer usernames and passwords from locked computers using a USB device loaded with a hacking app called Responder. The stolen passwords are encoded, sure, but once they’re in another person’s possession, they can be cracked. One of the small, Linux-powered computers he used (USB Armory) costs $155, but the other (Hak5 Turtle) costs only $50. Computers share log-in credentials with them, because they recognize the devices as trusted Ethernet adapters.

Fuller said the combination worked on all versions of Windows and even on El Capitan, though he still needs to check whether his Mac experiment was a fluke. He also said that the hack was so easy to pull off, he “tested it so many ways to confirm” since he had such a hard time believing it was possible.

He captured the process on cam, which you can watch below, and explained how it works in an email to Ars Technica:

“What is happening in the video, is the USB Armory is being plugged into a locked (but logged in) system. It boots up via the USB power, and starts up a DHCP server, and Responder. While it’s doing this, the victim is recognizing it as a Ethernet adapter. The victim then makes route decisions and starts sending the traffic it was already creating to the Armory instead of the “real” network connection. Responder does its job and responds to all kinds of services asking for authentication, and since most OSs treat their local network as “trusted” it sees the authentication request and automatically authenticates. Seeing that the database of Responder has been modified the Armory shuts down (LED goes solid).”

Of course, this is a non-issue if you exclusively use your computer at home, and there’s nobody living there you don’t trust. But if you tend to bring laptops to coffee shops and other places, check out this prevention technique Fuller recommends, or just make sure you never leave your computer unattended.

Via: Ars Technica

Source: Rob Fuller

Colin Powell advised Hillary Clinton on email servers

We may be sick and tired of hearing about Hillary Clinton’s damn emails, but that doesn’t mean the issue is going away. The presidential candidate has been lambasted by Republicans who claim that her private email server was a risk to national security. They may not be so delighted to hear, however, that she got the idea from one of their own: former secretary of state Colin Powell. The State Department has released a memo from Powell to Clinton, just days after she became secretary, revealing how he ran his own email server — and how Clinton could do the same.

Powell explains that he had a PC hooked up to a “private phone line” that he used to communicate “without it going through the State Department servers.” The official admits that he used it to speak to both friends and “some foreign leaders” and senior State Department employees, using their personal e-mail addresses. He also gave Clinton tips on how to get around the security that was on offer since “their job is to keep you hermetically sealed up.”

Powell also justified the use of private emails (amongst other things) by saying that the security services couldn’t offer enough justification as to why he should’t. The former secretary recounted an anecdote in which he asked why he couldn’t bring this PDA into secure space for fear of espionage. Powell describes the response as “all kinds of nonsense about how [devices] give out signals and could be read by spies.” He also advised Clinton that, should knowledge of her BlackBerry be made public, her emails would “become an official record and subject to the law.”

CNN reports that Powell has subsequently pushed back against the suggestion that he alone was responsible for Clinton’s actions. He is quoted as saying that “her [Clinton’s] people are trying to pin it on me,” although he previously said that the conversation took place a year after it actually did. That said, the fact that Powell has not received similar criticism for conducting diplomatic business away from State Department servers suggests that there’s one rule for some…

Via: LA Times

Source: CNN, Independent, State Department (.PDF)

Stage your own ‘Star Wars’ battles with this new Air Hogs line

Spin Master has a great track record when it comes to making awesome Star Wars merchandise, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the company has created two brand new Air Hogs products that you can actually use to recreate your own space battles.

The recently revealed Air Hogs Star Wars X-wing vs. Death Star Rebel Assault RC Drones set comes packing both an X-wing and the Death Star, which can actually fly. It’s your job to pilot the X-wing and shoot down the Death Star as it hovers in the air on its own. You can’t control the Death Star yourself, but it sure will look cool floating in the air attempting to avoid shots from your infrared blasters.

Both drones have receivers and LED status lights so you can tell where you’re are in your homemade battles, and it takes three hits from the X-wing to totally sink the Death Star before it can take you out.

If the Death Star isn’t your thing and you’d rather recreate an X-wing vs. TIE Fighter battle in your living room, you can opt for that set instead, as it packs two flying X-wing and TIE fighter drones with infrared blasters and receivers like the X-wing and Death Star set. You can control both of them, so if you’ve got a friend to take control of the other drone, the set should make for some good, old-fashioned dogfights. You can either take to a larger area with the wireless controllers’ 200-foot range for bigger battles.

The X-wing and Death Star set is available for preorder as of September 9th and will retail for $130, and the X-wing vs. TIE Fighter set will go for $200. If you’re planning on celebrating the holidays’ release of Rogue One, these couldn’t be more perfect pieces of memorabilia.

Via: Gizmodo

Apple Will Not Release First Weekend Sales Numbers for iPhone 7 Due to Demand Outweighing Supply

Apple, in a statement provided to CNBC, has announced that it will not be releasing first weekend sales numbers for the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, as it feels the results are “no longer a representative metric” due to demand outweighing supply.

“We expect iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus will be incredibly popular with customers and we are thrilled to begin taking pre-orders on September 9. Customers will receive their new iPhones starting September 16.

In years past, we’ve announced how many new iPhones had been sold as of the first weekend following launch. But as we have expanded our distribution through carriers and resellers to hundreds of thousands of locations around the world, we are now at a point where we know before taking the first customer pre-order that we will sell out of iPhone 7.

These initial sales will be governed by supply, not demand, and we have decided that it is no longer a representative metric for our investors and customers. Therefore we won’t be releasing a first-weekend number any longer. We are reiterating the financial guidance for the September quarter that we provided on July 26.”

In a research note last week, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said mass production of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus did not begin until the second half of August, later than expected, as Apple’s supply chain faced issues ramping up production due to challenging requirements for IPX7 water resistance.

The statement has ignited concern among some investors about potentially weaker iPhone sales numbers. Kuo himself revised his iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus shipments forecast to 20 to 25 million units in the quarter, compared to his original estimate of 30 million units. AAPL is currently down around 2% to $106.20 in intraday trading following the announcement.

Apple’s first weekend sales had increased sequentially for each iPhone launch between the iPhone 4s in 2011 and iPhone 6s in 2015:

• iPhone 6s and 6s Plus Sales Top Thirteen Million in Launch Weekend
• iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Sales Top Ten Million in Launch Weekend
• iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c Sales Top Nine Million in Launch Weekend
• iPhone 5 Sales Top Five Million in Launch Weekend
• iPhone 4S Sales Top 4 Million as 25 Million Users Move to iOS 5

Apple reiterated its financial guidance of between $45.5 billion and $47.5 billion in revenue for the fourth fiscal quarter.

Related Roundup: iPhone 7
Tag: AAPL
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Best iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus cases: Protect your new Apple device

Apple’s latest iPhones are finally here and they are lovely. The iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus continue with the all metal body but they see a refinement in their designs.

The company has moved the antenna strips on the rear to just the top and bottom of the devices, offering a cleaner look, while the headphone jack at the bottom has been replaced with an additional speaker. The iPhone 7 has a single camera lens on the rear, while the iPhone 7 Plus has a dual setup, but both have a more seamless camera bump than previously.

You probably already know all of this though, because if you’re reading this feature, chances are you’ve already bought your new iPhone, or you are planning on buying one soon. As we always say with smartphones that offer a lovely design, it’s a shame to cover them up, but better that than your lovely metal handset look like you’ve beaten it up three weeks into owning it.

Luckily, there are plenty of cases out there to protect your new iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus. Some will hide the design more so than others, some will offer more rugged protection than others, and some will be more interesting than others. We’ve rounded up the best iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus cases we have found so far but we will be adding to this feature as more catch our eye. 

Feel free to share in the comments if you have come across one you love. Sharing is caring when it comes to good cases.

Click here to head to the gallery to see the best iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 cases.

Epson and DJI team up for POV drone goggles

Phantom owners will soon be able to pilot their drones with a fresh perspective — that of the UAV itself. DJI and Epson announced on Thursday that they are teaming up. Together, they’ll expand DJI’s SDK to allow Epson’s Moverio BT-300 AR glasses to integrate with DJI’s Phantom, Matrice and Inspire lines of remote-controlled flyers.

DJI plans to optimize its DJI GO app to work with the Moverio glasses, which will simultaneously provide a first person view of what the drone’s camera sees as well as allow the pilot to maintain a direct line of sight with the UAV itself. That way, you’ll know exactly how close your Phantom 4 is to a tree without actually putting it into said tree. This partnership will also grant the Moverio BT-300’s DJI certification so you’ll be able to pick up a pair at the drone maker’s website throughout the holiday season.