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Bluesniper Creator Interviewed on Gizmodo

Posted by michael on from the long-shot dept.

carbolic writes "Gizmodo interviews John Hering, one of the Bluedriving crew (of which I was one: picture) and creator of the Bluesniper rifle. Get the backstory on the recent 1.08 mile cellphone Bluesnarf attack and find out his motivation for building the rifle and trying a snarf to a cellphone you can't even see."

42 comments

  1. its coming... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    all your bluetooth phones are belong to us.

  2. Dangerous by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That must be the most scary picture of a gang I have ever seen

  3. Motivation is always simple by Gopal.V · · Score: 2, Insightful

    It's never been done and more importantly "You can do it !!" (in a totally non-Waterboy style).

    The real question to be asked is - What next ? :)

    --
    Linux upped my productivity, now up yours.

    --
    Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur
  4. Re:IP Theft and The Linux Community by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Make sure you don't send shit to me.. I don't want your MS Office crap. And I can't believe there are people like you out there... jesus christ some people are idiots. There are many more holes and problems with Windows than Linux. Ever have to remove 3 adwares that just won't go away? Yes, spend 8 fucking hours cleaning up after Windows' problems. Never have to deal with that on Linux, never have any app problems on Linux, easy install (SuSe+Fedora have *really easy* installs). The downside is games, Linux isn't up-to-par with Games (for now). Do some practical usage before you post general bullshit.

  5. Customs by elbazo · · Score: 2, Funny

    The question is, if he tried to get that out of the country would he be called a terrorist for having a rifle shaped object that would interfere with the planes radar system.

    1. Re:Customs by WolfWithoutAClause · · Score: 1
      In actual fact he'd probably be alright provided he packed it in the hold luggage and removed the batteries.

      Your average X-ray machine will trivially see it isn't powered and doesn't contain explosives and they'll just ignore it.

      --

      -WolfWithoutAClause

      "Gravity is only a theory, not a fact!"
  6. Re:IP Theft and The Linux Community by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    10. You cannot admit that no one in their right mind would do professional video editing in Linux.

    Disney?? Pixar?? Both have/will do video editing on Linux systems... I stopped reading your idiotic post there. Do some research before you speak, idiot.

  7. Re:IP Theft and The Linux Community by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    how do i update everything?
    windows:for whats free find the update site download and install for whats not buy latest verison
    linux: apt-get update

  8. Go way to get tackled down by security! by barks · · Score: 3, Insightful

    When I saw this gizmo originally on Tom's Hardware Defcon 12 review (posted on a /. article), I thought in deed it was clever but more so intriguing b/c it was slapped on to a rifle handle. I can just imagine bingo-ladies calling 911 when they see a bunch of lads driving around pointing this thing aimlessly out the window trying to snag a signal, if their team name "Bluedriving crew".

    No doubt a solid way to get in trouble is to make something look like a weapon and walk around public with it, or to point one of them laser pointers at Bill Clinton at a next book signing (offtopic note: notice the stiff no-ass-grab-hug in that picture he has to do now).:P

    --

    Some aim to please, I aim to tease.
    1. Re:Go way to get tackled down by security! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I think that the point of the rifle was more of a 'Whoa! Cool!' factor for the other geeks at Defcon. This probably wasn't meant for much real use and if it is something that they 'bluedrive' with, then they are idiots.

  9. Re:IP Theft and The Linux Community by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Oh please... blacks cry racism for everything. Checking photo IDs for a credit card purchase (I work in Retail) and they say "Hell no nigga', the only reason you checkin' is cause I'm black"--after translating it to English, I figured out what they were trying to say. The reason they're not on the higher ups is because they can't speak English!!

  10. Deja vu by beeglebug · · Score: 1

    What exactly is covered in that article that we didn't read about yesterday?
    Just look at the replies, everyone is just going over the same "you'd totally get arrested" ground. There's nothing new to discuss, which begs the question, why post the story?

    1. Re:Deja vu by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The article goes more indepth. Most of the people posting "You'd totally get arrested dude!" haven't read the article. It doesn't focus much on their 'sniper rifle' as opposed to them, what they do, and the 1.08 mile record. Read the article before you start claiming there's nothing new. Just becuase morons repost the same replies as yesterday doesn't mean that there's nothing new. It just shows you how many people post before they even know what they are posting about.

  11. Firearm offence? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    If you started pointing this around in public in the uk, you would be likely to be either shot or taken in for questioning relating to a firearms offence (it doesn't have to be a real firearm).

    1. Re:Firearm offence? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'd say taken in for questioning. You're more likely to be shot in the US for something like that.

  12. DORKS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    wow, these are some serious dweebs we got here. It's always amusing when a geek thinks he is cool. Geeks carrying video-game style "weapons" is even funnier.

  13. Double Standard? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Let me get this straight: This guy invented a gadget which is expressly designed to mess with other people's property, correct?

    And this makes him a geek hero?

    If this device was a US government-sponsored project,can you imagine the barrage of outraged posts?

    1. Re:Double Standard? by Jeff+DeMaagd · · Score: 1

      Someone has to demonstrate security flaws. I don't like the black hacker mentality, but sometimes people have to prove it directly.

      You can be sure that the government won't. They like having backdoors anyway, although they generally aren't smart enough to close their own backdoors.

      I think it is stupid to make a yagi look like a sniper rifle-raygun anyway, the beam width is usually way too wide anyway. I'd like to see the range those things get with a parabolic. You won't be able to do the sniper look though, which is fine.

    2. Re:Double Standard? by ConsoleDeamon · · Score: 1

      Nope just he made a realy good Bluetooth anntenna. what you use it fore is another subject.

    3. Re:Double Standard? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you bothered to RTFA, then you would know that the only point of the antenna was to prove that a bluetooth could be received over long distances. The excuse that the industry gives for not closing up the gaps in security is that bluetooth can't operate over long distances so there is no need to bother. They have proven that you can detect and communicate with bluetooth devices over long distances. It was also mentioned that the only phones that were actually attacked were their own. They made sure that they had the consent of the phone owners to attempt the attacks. They didn't attack unsuspecting people's phones. They just detected the phones to demonstrate their antenna and the range bluetooth can have.

      Next time think before you post. Building an antenna isn't a malicious act. Or else I could say that all of the SETI satellite disk arrays are 'designs of the devil' becuase they could be used to send out messages to government spy satellites in orbit. Unless you care to enlighten us as to how an antenna, in and of itself, is 'expressly designed to mess with other people's property.'

      *side note*
      The sniper rifle antenna isn't the one they used to break the 1.08 miles. They used a more powerful antenna. But you already knew that becuase you read the article... oh that's right.

    4. Re:Double Standard? by bluGill · · Score: 1

      No, this guy built a device to mess with his own property. So long as he is only using it for legal, ethical purposes I have no problem with it. If he were using it on unsuspecting random people, then he should be jailed.

      I have in my house right now a device that can not just mess with people 3 miles away, but actually kill them. So does a large percentage of the population, but I don't try that because it is unethical. (Never mind that I'm not a good enough shot to hit at even 1 mile) Same thing, its not what you can do with a device, it is what you do do.

  14. Re:IP Theft and The Linux Community by mungeh · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Mr. Gates!? is that you!?

  15. Seems like a bad idea by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting
    to have something that looks like a rifle in these uneasy times. Jittery armed security types have been know to shoot first and ask questions later.

    Anyone care to try this out at the upcoming RNC in NYC. Police: "I think we have a shooter here." "Take him out, now!".

    1. Re:Seems like a bad idea by SteveXE · · Score: 1

      uneasy times..? the times are no more uneasy in regards to our safety then they were 10 years ago, the only difference is the current administration likes to shove every little detail down our throats color coded and laced with fear.

  16. No he would be called a "corpse" by SmallFurryCreature · · Score: 1
    Really doesn't seem to bright to use this thing anywhere but a secure area where everyone knows what it is. All you need is one 911 call and next thing you know you got a swat team asking questions. Questions like "stop twitching or we will shoot you again", "would you like you bunk-mate to be a gigantic horny black guy or a white biker guy".

    Something tells me these guys are going to be in the news more often.

    --

    MMO Quests are like orgasms:

    You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.

  17. Re:Yes, Bluetooth is inherently insecure by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Hey look at me! I have nothing better to do than criticize others in areas in which I have no interest! I don't have anything constructive or useful to add to this discussion, so intead I'm going to make a nuisance out of myself because, clearly, anything I'm not interested in is stupid.

    Speaking of personality disorders...

  18. I don't get it... by otlg · · Score: 1

    Ok.. you made a nuisance device and shaped it like a weapon. Wow, that's so incredibly special!!

    Seriously, why not put all that effort into something that *might actually* be useful for people? I mean it's not like RF devices are black magic anymore, so where's the challenge, the feeling of discovery.

    This sounds like something that rednecks should be doing not geeks. Overall I rate the story: "Boooo!!".

  19. Re:Welcome to slashdot by mungeh · · Score: 1

    only 1mb!?

  20. In other news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    In other news today it is announced that, YOU ARE ALL COCKS.