Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Drive-By Spies Grab Personal Info Out Of Air

From: Marcel <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 14 Nov 2002 03:07:55 -0500

Drive-By Spies Grab Personal Info Out Of Air
Computer Users Often Fail To Use Security Systems

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- What would you say if someone
could pick up confidential information about you right
out of the air, just by driving down the street? The
fact is, things like credit card numbers and any
private information that passes through computers,
whether in stores or your home, is vulnerable to
theft. 
 
Behind most computers is a spaghetti-like tangle of
wires -- too messy for most people. So more computers
now communicate without being connected by wires at
all, making them more convenient, but also prime
targets for "drive-by spies." 

Wireless computers are the hottest trend since the
Internet, with more than $2 billion in sales this year
and growing. 

There's a wireless revolution. Wireless computers are
everywhere: in stores, banks, hospitals and
universities, allowing information to fly through the
air with little fuss ... and little security. 

Paul Henry, a security expert from the computer
security firm CyberGuard, took NBC 6 senior
correspondent Ike Seamans on a drive-by hacking
demonstration in downtown Fort Lauderdale. 

Seamans and Henry drove around the city with a
wireless laptop computer, while Henry demonstrated how
easy it is to penetrate a wireless network that's not
protected by encryption, just by passing near it. 

It's called drive-by hacking -- locating unprotected
wireless computers from a car. 

"It takes hacking to a whole new level. It is
anonymous hacking," Henry said. 

He used the same tools as cyberthieves: an inexpensive
antenna, standard laptop, and free software from the
Internet. Henry showed NBC 6 showed to enter wireless
computers that have no security. 

In minutes, the laptop's screen was filled with
wireless networks. Less than 20 percent had any
security at all. 

"We could enter one of these networks right now from
here in this car?" Seamans asked. 

"Yeah, we could enter the network," Henry said. 

"You could get confidential records if they are not
properly secure," Henry said. To demonstrate, he
picked up another network as the car passed in front
of a downtown Fort Lauderdale office building. 

The NBC 6 investigation found unsecured wireless cash
registers transmitting credit card transactions from a
popular clothing shop and a major department store,
plus wireless computers with no security in doctor's
offices, government facilities and an aviation company
at the airport. 

Armed with a tiny handheld computer, another
cyberhacker tool, Henry inconspicuously entered an
office building, where he quickly found companies
using wireless computers with no security. 

"If I had this (handheld computer) connected to a
wireless cash register, we could then grab the
transaction data as we walk through the building,"
Henry said. 

That's what happened to Best Buy stores last May.
Wireless cash registers were shut down in 500 stores
until security was installed, following reports that
drive-by hackers were stealing customer credit card
data. 

After his drive-by hacking demonstrations, Henry
created a map showing unsecured wireless networks in
Fort Lauderdale. The map was complete with all the
details needed to enter the networks. 

"If you don't secure your network, you deserve to be
hacked," Henry said. 

Stealing from wireless networks is easy because
they're just radio broadcasts sending signals through
the air from one computer to another, Henry added.
Without security, signals are easily intercepted,
networks can be breached, and vital information can be
stolen. 

According to computer security experts Damon Cortesi
and Greg Moody, the easiest targets for hackers are
home wireless computers which come with built-in
security systems that many owners don't even turn on,
believing they'll never be a victim. 

"If you did your taxes on your computer, store
confidential data on your computer and haven't secured
it, someone driving around could access that," Cortesi
said. 

And Moody added: "What has been most surprising is the
number of businesses as well as residences that have
not taken the basic levels of security that are
available." 

Cortesi and Moody's consulting firm, Crowe Chizek,
finds just 20 percent of the nation's 25,000 wireless
networks have adequate security. That, experts say, is
a hacker's gold mine. 

Signals from hand-held computers and cell phones that
access wireless networks are easily intercepted, too.
For that reason, employees at the Pentagon are
prevented from using them to connect to classified
computers. 

The United States Secret Service and the FBI probe for
poor wireless security in government agencies and
private companies. 

Kelly Darden of the FBI's Miami bureau says taking
basic precautions is important, even at the cost of
convenience. 

"Security comes at a price," Darden said. "It is an
inconvenience, but I think it is a necessary
precaution that in the long run is going to pale in
comparison when you consider the potential damage that
can be done if your system is attacked." 

If a business computer doesn't have adequate security,
it could cost thousands of dollars to make it more
secure. But for home computers, experts say it's not
only inexpensive but also common sense. 

Home wireless computer users can improve security by
taking three simple steps. First, remember to turn on
the computer's security system. Second, get a firewall
for your computer. They are as cheap as $40 and can
prevent unauthorized users from tapping into your
computer. And third, learn more about hackers, and the
tactics they may use to get into your computer or
network. 

http://www.nbc6.net/ikeseamans/1784744/detail.html

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