Slashdot Mirror
Military on Alert for Killer Coke Cans
DigitalLogic writes "There's a new security threat at some of the nation's military bases -- and it looks uncannily like a can of Coke.
All I can think of is that a furby with a coke can must be the military's worse nightmare."
"You can win, but you can't hide" as their promo stand ups in grocery stores read. Items tracking you, just a hint of waht is to come with RFID. Be afraid.
Distributed proteome folding @ WorldCommunityGrid.org
Team Slashdot - Members:#1 Run Time:#1 Points:#1 Results:#1
Sometimes, the military doesn't like the location of troops being revealed to anybody. They ban all cell phones and GPS devices that they don't control from being with such groups.
So, should a "winning" can be brought on such a mission, you've got a security hole... sure, the message is encrypted so that only Coca-Cola Prize Patrol knows where you are and hears what you say to them, but Coca-Cola Prize Patrol doesn't have security clearance now, do they?
There was a promotion a few years ago involving an Ontario dairy. A few personal-sized cartons of milk were wired with a speaker and electronics, that were supposed to make a "moo" sound when opened (thereby indicating that you had won a prize).
Somebody apparently got one of these at a food court in downtown Toronto, and left it behind (I guess the prize wasn't that impressive). Somebody else saw this carton of milk with wires and electronics and called the bomb squad. The building was evacuated, much to the amusement of the local news media (once they found out what happened).
Toronto-area transit rider? Rate your ride.
In a "restricted area", usually the military doesn't want any electronics device that they don't control going in. Cans of Coke are tolerated, but cell phone links to the civilian world aren't...
Besides, even if you had a winning can on a military base, it's not like Coca-Cola's Prize Patrol is going to be able to deliver your SUV to you on the base... they most likely won't be allowed in.
disguising a coke can that looks just like the innocent 'outgoing call only + gps' with a 'bi-directional + gps + other nasty goodies' can
... I think you meant a phone that can connect to numbers other than Coke's prize center, not bi-directional.
"Uh, sir. Your coke can is ringing."
"Hello? Oh, hi Osama. No, I'm sorry, I can't tell you any of our secret plans. Thanks for calling, though."
Random and weird software I've written.
"Uh, sir, is there a hiss coming from your Coke can?"
- as a near (but not quite) inaudible hiss becomes the only tell tale trace of a Sarin attack.
I think a remotely triggered attack hidden within an otherwise innocuous looking can of Coke is *exactly* what would be meant by bi-directional.
OK, sorry to have to post this as an AC, but kinda forced to...
The job of a security manager is to be paranoid. Pure and simple.
I'm not allowed to have a cellphone at work... or a pager ( not just a 2-way pager, ANY pager). No writable media permitted, under any circumstance.
( Yeah, that's right-- I can get arrested for forgetting to leave my USB keydrive in my car in the morning. )
Is it paranoia? No. It's 'heightened operational security'. Clearances only go so far-- look at the $%$%tards like Ames and Hanssen.
Obviously, they've missed a significant chunk of people with any ad campaign for this contest-- I go thru 2 cases of Coke a week, and I only heard about the contest last week.
Without knowing what the GPScans looked like, how would you keep them out of a 'secure' facility???
Pepsi is always a few cents cheaper. I never buy Coke above $3/12-pack and this 4th of July, they were at $3.29 (with the yellow "Save!" price label to boot). If I have to have soda pop and Coke prices itself out, I usually fall back on Dr. Pepper or 7-Up.
At $2.79 for a real fridge friendly 12-pack, I decided to give Pepsi a go this weekend. Now, I'm sitting here sipping one and wondering why I never bothered all this time.
Fanboyism definitely has its limitations.
This is a typical sarcastic reaction from non-military people. In the military a policy is a policy and must be followed strictly. Classified information is no joke. If a policy states that you will not have any device that transmits or receives information within x meters of where classified information is being processed or discussed then that must be strictly followed whether its a cell phone, blackberry, pager, walkie talkie, or in this case a promotional coke can. There are no exceptions, not even for generals. They can check their devices at the door, but even they are not exempt. Generals should not be staying up worrying at night about these coke cans, thats why they delegate such matters to us security people. But now I've said too much....Now look directly into the beam of light.
I think this is a valid reaction. Think about it: its internal cell phone could be hacked to call some other phone and possibly even send all audio from the user - in whatever sensitive area - to wherever it is programmed to call. Of course, this could be integrated into normal Coke cans, but this is a good disguise for such an act, as ridiculous as it sounds.
A blog like any other.
I had heard an advertisement on the radio for this coca cola contest. Apparently they are putting a phone and gps locator inside some coke cans. If you find one you win a car. Of course phones and gps locators are not allowed in the secure areas ("behind the fence") in Los Alamos. Check this out.
1 0_ americas_gps_promotion.html
---------- Forwarded message ----------
You might get a chuckle out of this one (shades of Maxwell Smart), but apparently it's for real. If you work behind or near the fence please remove and report any coke cans found to contain a phone and GPS locator.
----- Begin Included Message -----
Might be careful before bringing Cokes into the security area.....
Subject:FW: Security Alert: Coke cans w/phone & GPS locator
It's a Coke - No, it's a phone with GPS locator!
This is NOT a HOAX, it is a legitimate contest being run by Coca-Cola!
Coca-Cola Cans With GPS Locators
1. Between May 17th and July 12th, approximately 120 cans of Coca-Cola with GPS locators will be hidden in specially marked 12, 18, 20, or 24 packs. While the advertisement states they could be hidden in Coke Classic, caffeine Free Coke, Cherry Coke; or Vanilla Coke, a phone call to Coke Customer Service found the locators will be hidden in packs of Coke Classic only.
2. The hi-tech Coke "Unexpected Summer" can is equipped with SIM card, keypad and GPS locator. On the outside of each can are a button, microphone, and a tiny speaker. Pressing the larger red button starts the game in process, thus activating the GPS signal and a cell phone used by the customer to call a special hotline.
3. Coca-Cola packages should be opened and inspected before entering the SCIF. Obviously, if one is found, it should not be activated within the SCIF; nor, should it be carried into the SCIF once activated. If one is discovered in the SCIF, either in a snack fund or from a vending machine, immediately report it to your Division Security Officer.
http://www2.coca-cola.com/presscenter/nr_200405
Imagine for a moment someone DID constuct a bomb out of a coke can. How much semtex would a coke can hold? I've never played with the stuff, so I don't really know how powerful it is. I would guess though, if one were to go off in your face, identification by dental records might prove difficult. And wouldn't you feel better then knowing the military DIDN'T take it seriously?
GPS plus a cellphone is no big deal - we already know where all the bases are anyway. However, I work at a military facility that strictly bans camera-phones from the flight line (where the planes are parked) - because there's quite a bit of sensitive material there - designs we don't want our enemies to see, or even our allies.
Cell phones are NOT banned from all meetings. Far from it. See, quite a bit of the stuff that gets discussed is completely banal - "Okay, have your secretary call mine and set up a meeting to discuss this issue further" - but you can bet they're strictly banned from any conversation that is at all sensitive.
Now, about the Coke cans. The real issue is NOT the GPS receiver, or the cell phone technology - I'm pretty sure it's got something to do with not wanting some Coke reps in a big white van full of interesting gadgets to try crashing the gates at a sensitive military facility. You want to get visited at home, no problem - leave the can there. Just don't invite them HERE, thank you very much. Again, it's common sense.
And yeah, I suspect there are some latent concerns about nefarious uses. But I doubt that's any more of a concern than for any other cell phone, or Blackberry two-way pager, or whatever.
It's common sense, people. Contrary to Hollywood's view, the US military is neither incompetent nor full of powermongers. It's mostly a lot of very dedicated, very intelligent people trying their best to defend and strengthen the good 'ol USofA, and that includes defense against reasonably possible intelligence-gathering hardware. Because face it, it's a lot cheaper to steal a good design than create it from scratch.
--Brandon / Split Infinity Music
Coke cans that disguised as cell phones distributed to crack dealers with bonus samples of cocaine. (Oh. Wait... didn't it already, I mean..)
Faith: n. -- That human impulse that drives them to steal appliances when the power goes out
is there a similar restriction on bringing cell phones to military bases or "sensitive" areas? It seems a regular cell phone would be more dangerous in this light than the killer coke cans, since, as Coke says in the article, the cans only call Coke and that's it. A cell phone could be programmed to call anywhere and function as a monitoring device, and spies could find your location based on a cell phone even without GPS. Hell, someone could install one of these in a can of 7-Up to really throw them off. But all that presumes the intent to spy.... the article is about preventing the accidental security risk of a Coke contest winner bringing this device to a meeting and accidentally sending the meeting details and private location to Coke. Again, that's fine, but it doesn't say in the article whether they'll prevent normal cell phones from coming in, which would pose the same threat.
"When you enter a secure area,you leave your cell,pager,PDA,laptop,etc,at the door."
It'll be watches before too long. Today you can buy a watch with a camera built in, another that has memory so you can drop computer data into it. Before long there'll be watches with 2-way radio bulit into them. (I'm talking about USA here, I'm aware that there are wrist-watch cell phones elsehwere.)
Eventually the gov't is going to have to find a way to keep data secure with the assumption that people have all these devices. (Sadly, I do not claim to have the answer to that.)
"Derp de derp."
That's no joke.
In my job (automotive industry) I often go on to sites where cameras are banned outright - whether it's an antique view-camera or a camera-equipped mobile phone. There's commercial concerns, and big incentives at stake...the car magazines would love a spread of grainy pixelated photos of a year-after-next model whizzing around a test track (to say nothing of the styling department at competitor companies), and unscrupulous photographers have made big money by providing such pictures.
On entering these sites, we're told in no uncertain terms that if we're found to have any kind of camera, we'll be removed, and banned for life from any company site.
I recently bought a new mobile phone. I had to turn down a very attractive package deal because the phone happened to have a camera built in. I need to have my phone with me at customer sites, and I can't afford to be blacklisted.
I don't know how they'd cope with somebody who had a photographic memory and some artistic talent...