Hasta La Gadget!

A single line of code can apparently trigger an unstoppable factory-reset of the Samsung Galaxy S III, security researchers have discovered, with the potential for malicious websites to wipe out users’ phones. The hack was detailed by Ravi Borgaonkar at the Ekoparty security conference, with a simple USSD code – that could be sent from a website, or pushed to the handset by NFC or triggered by a QR code – that can reset the Galaxy S III or indeed other Samsung handsets.

Although the phone user is able to see the process taking place, hitting back on the device will not stop the reset. For QR code readers that automatically load whatever website has been stored to each code, or indeed NFC readers that do the same with NFC tags, the user would have no warning – and no hope of stopping – their handset from running the malicious code.

Only Samsung devices running TouchWiz appear to be affected, with basic Android only showing the code in the dialer screen but not running it automatically, Pau Oliva reports. Samsung’s default, though, is to dial the code automatically.

Perhaps most concerning, it’s reportedly possible to double up on the attack, Borgaonkar says, including a USSD code that also kills the SIM card currently in the handset. That way, a single message could be used to wipe a Samsung phone and leave the user with a broken SIM too.

It’s also possible to push Samsung handsets straight to a website running the bad code using a WAP-push SMS message. For the moment, the advice is to deactivate automatic site-loading in whatever QR and/or NFC reader software you use, and be careful about clicking links that you don’t implicitly trust.

Update: The same code has been found to work on the Galaxy Beam, S Advance, Galaxy Ace, and Galaxy S II. However, the Samsung-made Galaxy Nexus, which runs stock Android, is not susceptible.

Update 2: Other Samsung device owners are claiming that the hack does not work on their device. We’re running our own tests and will update when we know more.

Update 3: Tweakers’ Arnoud Wokke has filmed a demo of the hack in action on a Galaxy S II.

Update 4: “The USSD code issue in the SGS3 is patched, and has been for some time” TeamAndIRC claims. “Current i747 [AT&T Galaxy S III] and i9300 [European Galaxy S III] firmware are not vulnerable.” An update pushed out to the AT&T Galaxy S III last week apparently patched the loophole, with the i9300 being updated beforehand. We’re still yet to hear from Samsung with an official comment.

We’ve reached out to Samsung for comment.

[via Steve Troughton-Smith]

Samsung Galaxy S III remote data-wipe hack reportedly discovered [Updated] is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Mobile security company Intrepidus Group presented evidence during the EUSecWest security conference potentially identifying a major flaw in at least two US transit systems. Creating an Android app named “UltraReset” and using it in tandem with an NFC-enabled Android phone (a Nexus S, in this case), security researchers Corey Benninger and Max Sobell were able to reset and reuse — free of charge — transit access cards in both San Francisco’s MUNI system and New Jersey’s PATH system. Before you go getting any bad ideas, know that Benninger and Sobell haven’t released the app for public use, and warned both transit systems in late 2011 (though neither region has fixed the exploit, the duo claim). PATH and MUNI share a common chip access card — the Mifare Ultralight — which can apparently be reset for 10 extra rides (as demonstrated on video below) via Android phones with NFC, an OS newer than 2.3.3 (Gingerbread). Starting to sound familiar?

Intrepidus is, however, releasing a modified version of the app, named “UltraCardTester.” The modified app functions just like its nefarious progenitor, except it can’t add time to cards (see it in action below). The app can tell you how many rides you have left, and if a system is open to exploit, but it won’t assist you in the act of exploiting. We reached out to both New Jersey’s PATH and San Francisco MUNI on the issue, but have yet to hear back as of publishing.

Continue reading Security researchers identify transit system exploit in San Fran and New Jersey, create app to prove it

Filed under: Cellphones, Transportation, Wireless, Software, Mobile

Security researchers identify transit system exploit in San Fran and New Jersey, create app to prove it originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Sep 2012 19:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember the Mac Mini that was modded into an old Apple ][ Disk Drive a couple of years back? Well, the modder behind the build has now put it up for sale on eBay, to make room for other projects.

It only has a 1.5Ghz Core Solo CPU and 2GB of RAM, so it’s not the latest and greatest in Mac Mini tech, but on the other hand it’s way more powerful than the 1978 floppy drive upon which it is based. My favorite part of the mod has always been the slot-loading DVD drive that’s perfectly aligned with the old floppy disk slot.

Modder Charles Mangin has listed the 5-1/4″ floppy drive cum Mac Mini with a starting bid of $500(USD), but if you absolutely must have it, there’s a Buy-it-Now price of $1000.

Devious developers have already cooked up a way to bake Google Maps mass transit directions into Apple’s iOS 6 Maps app, though the workaround isn’t quite ready for primetime yet. Google Transit for iOS 6 is the handiwork of Simon Maddox, adding a Google Directions option to the list of third-party plugins Apple offers for alternative routing, and pulling up results in Safari.

Apple does not offer mass transit guidance in this first generation version of Maps, and instead leaves the field open for third-party developers to do so instead. Those options – such as Garmin’s newly updated Navigon and StreetPilot Onboard – show up in a Routing Apps menu after you search for directions.

However, for Maddox’s Google Directions plugin to be broadly available, it would need to be approved by Apple itself for distribution in the App Store. Right now, it’s only useful for registered iOS developers, who can deploy it to their devices using Xcode.

Maddox isn’t confident that Apple would ever approve his code, and so the likelihood of an official release seems low. Google is yet to confirm any plans for a Google Maps for iOS app distributed via the App Store, and it’s possible the company will decide to keep it as an Android perk altogether.

Update: Looks like Simon wasn’t the only person working on something along these lines. Fellow iOS developer Jesse Vincent also cooked up a Google mass transit directions plugin for Apple Maps, and has submitted it to Apple for approval.

Apple Maps hack adds Google public transport directions option is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Raspberry Pi has added a “turbo mode”, squeezing 50-percent more performance out of its fruity mini computer  without dinging your warranty in the process. Reminiscent of the old “Turbo” button on 90s PC cases, the green-light tweak can in fact be set to one of five different overclock presets, boosting the ARM processor to as high as 1GHz.

According to Raspberry Pi, overclocking was supported by the hardware at least from the outset, and was a simple matter of editing the config.txt file. However, the team was unsure whether it could have a negative impact on chipset life, and so decided to make it a warranty-buster.

After some more testing, however, and some clever automatic scaling which only allows turbo mode to function when the system is busy and, essentially, when temperature levels are sub-85-degrees centigrade, the official overclock has been produced. Raspberry Pi suggests testing with Quake 3 – something we know the $25 board is very capable of doing – to test out system stability.

Other system tweaks include WiFi support out of the box – though you’ll need to provide a USB WiFi adapter yourself – along with improved analog audio and better USB performance. New boards will come with the turbo mode option enabled; existing owners can upgrade with instructions here.

Raspberry Pi squeezes 50% performance boost with turbo mode is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.