Friday, November 29, 2019

Security so low you can step over it

from here (image source)

No one's going to guess the combination because no one needs to, except maybe small children.

Expectation vs. Reality

found on Animals Being Cute

The sign might keep people away, but the actual dog would have the opposite effect. Hide that dog.

Thursday, November 28, 2019

And you can get them at your local pet store

from here and here (image source)

It's nice to know that ordinary citizens can still find ways to defend themselves against technology that's used against them.

Encryption Is Not A Crime phone case

Product Page

While there are certainly efforts to turn the law against encryption, those efforts are ultimately misguided and showing off this on the back of your phone whenever you're using it is a great way to remind the people in your vicinity of that fact.

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

How not to stay hidden

from here

This story may focus on the victim and the mistakes they made, but I'm more interested in the mistakes the attacker made. Did they fall asleep? Did they forget to check the progress? Did it never occur to them there might not be enough room to zip up all the data they wanted to exfiltrate?

The Hoax Hotel : The Angriest Scammer I Ever Called


Watch on YouTube

I almost feel sorry for this scammer. Almost.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Purrrivacy Please

from here (image source)

Some people treat animals better than their fellow humans. For those people I hope this will make them think about giving whoever is at the ATM a little more room and a little more privacy.

That's not suspicious at all

original tweet

Clever of the Marin County Sheriff's Department to not specify which parking lot this was "lost" in. I expect they'll be getting contacted by many different people (both those who have actually lost their meth and those dumb enough to think they can scam the cops).

Monday, November 25, 2019

By day a bank teller, but by night a bank taker

from here (source image and article)

This is definitely the opposite of the way bank-related robberies are supposed to go, but bank customers are certainly easier to rob than banks themselves. Obviously not easy enough for this guy.

Password Parenting

found on Sneakhype

Maybe if they not only have to read it but type it in it will actually stick and get followed.

Friday, November 22, 2019

If you want your device blocked by ads...

from here (source article)

I'm not sure how stealthy it can be if it's showing that many ads, but that's a heck of a ballsy move to pretend to be an ad blocker while putting ads in all the things.

How threat models have changed

found on Izismile

I know we're terrible at estimating risk, but when I see it presented like this I'm not sure if we're getting better over time or worse.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Have fun locking up at the end of your shift

from here (image source)

My Anti-Virus Software mug

Product Page

While there are certainly more effective ways of recovering from a virus, this will definitely kill it (along with the patient).

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

The gavel is mightier than the checkbox

from here and here (image source one and two)

Your privacy preferences (perhaps we should start calling them preferences instead of settings, since they really only express what outcomes we would prefer not what actually happens) don't trump a court order or a search warrant. If the authorities are part of your threat model, relying on a checkbox isn't going to do you any good.

Why didn't InfoSec think of that?

found on Reddit

Just imagine if all we had to do to protect ourselves online was to put up "No Hacking" signs.

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

They'll never hack through this

from here (image source)

There are a lot of strange ideas about how to protect yourself from online threats. Some are even stranger than this. Did you know there were actually anti-virus crystals?

Niklas Roy: My Little Piece Of Privacy


Watch on YouTube

This is a fun idea. I think your actual privacy would be better served by a full curtain rather than just a tiny section of one, especially since the motion of this seems to make nosy passers-by even nosier, but as an interactive art piece that explores the concept of privacy I think it's great.

Monday, November 18, 2019

Just tell people you're entering the Miss America Online pageant

from here (image source)

When I see things like this I can't help but think that women should be much better smugglers than men. I can't imagine a guy pulling off something like this.

Seems secure

found on Imgur

Is putting the WiFi password on the router a thing people do? Are they just leaving it with the default password that's already pasted on the device? I was dragged kicking and screaming into the WiFi age, but I certainly don't have the password on the router (although I can see how that might be convenient, like a computer password stuck to the side of the monitor).

Friday, November 15, 2019

Seems more legit

from here (image source)

Now you might be thinking "Well we can see there actually is candy here so it is legit", but it's still the same candy-from-strangers threat as the more traditional candy van. Is that actually candy or just a ruse? What happens to you when you eat that "candy"? Will it incapacitate you?

The insider threat must blend in

found on Memedroid

We might see the difference, but those rabbits clearly think nothing is wrong.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Howdy neighbour

from here (image source)

I suppose this could be a feature, rather than a bug. It may cut down on cleaning costs.

NSA "F**k Yo Privacy" phone case

Product Page

Next time you whip out your phone you could also make a statement against government invasion of privacy.

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

See something, say something

from here

Apparently this is a true story, and it's also an excellent demonstration of why average joes are terrible at deciding what is or isn't suspicious.

The reason no one holds Facebook accountable

found on Imgur

No, it's not because the data Facebook misappropriates and mishandles is worthless, it's because people believe it is. And to be clear, it's not all people who believe that, it's just the people the power to do something that believe it. They don't value what Facebook takes from us, so they let those abuses slide.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

What could possibly go wrong?

from here and here

I have to wonder what the Australian government was thinking when they came up with this plan. It seems tailor made for abuse, and it would be one of the worst kinds of abuse.

Dual Core : 0x0A Hack Commandments


Watch on YouTube

Wow, it's been a long time since I listened to one of these. Lots of good advice in this song. You should consider listening a few times (and shutting the actual F up while you do).

Monday, November 11, 2019

Airport 'Security'

from here and here (image source)

How low can the TSA sink? No one is going to mistake that for a real weapon, but somehow that doesn't matter to the TSA.

Too Blocked; Didn't Read

found on Imgur

I don't think I've ever encountered an article on the Internet that had a headline so interesting I was willing to turn off my ad-blocker. I wonder where people got the idea users would do that.

Friday, November 8, 2019

It works the same way for backups

from here

So Baltimore failed to protect themselves against a ransomware attack and apparently they're now planning to fail again. I'm not sure there's any other way to interpret getting insurance equal to the cost of recovering unless you think you're going to need to recover again.

And you know what, $20M would buy a lot of backups.

Homeopathic Antivirus

found on Meme Base

Make sure you use honey and not molasses - or else you might slow down your computer.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

I bet this wasn't in your threat model

from here (image source)

How do you prepare for something like this? How do you defend against it? What exactly can you lock the steps onto in order to keep them from being hauled away?

No I Will Not Remove Your Virus mug

Product Page

I used to have a T-shirt that read "No I will not fix your computer". I wore it out. This looks like it would last longer, but I'll be honest - if someone comes to me with a virus problem I will help, regardless of what a mug might say.

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

We worked extra hard to find the least we could do

from here

On the plus side, at least the amount of the settlement won't go down if too many people claim it like certain other settlements I could name.

I wouldn't mind this kind of security screening

found on Imgur

If we could train an army of kittens to do what those large, intimidating dogs do, I'm not sure we'd still be using the dogs.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

When your scope is too narrow

from here (image source)

This is what happens when no one is looking at the big picture, when everyone is just looking at their own little part and not seeing how things are supposed to fit together and work as a whole. This turnstile isn't stopping anyone.

How not to steal a chainsaw


Watch on YouTube

I don't know, maybe the chainsaw was worth more to him than what was already down there, but that just looks too dangerous.

Monday, November 4, 2019

Outsourcing done wrong

from here

What are the odds of finding a string of 5 hitmen that are all so greedy and lazy that none of them actually wants to bother doing the hit?

Deterrent Win

found on Reddit

I mean, I've heard of taking a hand or two, but that right there is harsh.

Friday, November 1, 2019

Security by decrepitude

from here

So technically security by decrepitude is just a subset of security by obscurity, so it's not really security at all. But that being said, I can't help but think the Air Force is going to be less safe if they move to something more modern than 8 inch floppies.

Privacy vs. Accountability

found on Imgur

On the one hand I'm as grossed out by people missing the toilet as the next person, but on the other hand I'm creeped out by the idea that someone would be able to see me do it and I kinda want to miss on purpose now just to uncover which bathrooms are safe from prying eyes.