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Knoppix Used in Internet Banking Solution

Posted by samzenpus on from the open-banking dept.

renai42 writes "Australian company Cybersource says it's currently talking to two domestic banks about providing Knoppix-based bootable CDs to consumers to ensure Internet banking security. The company says at least one bank will probably use the CDs in at least one sector of its operations. Cybersource envisages that banks will re-brand its product and provide the CDs alongside other marketing material."

4 of 263 comments (clear)

  1. This will be viewd as a great idea.. by nfs3hp · · Score: 5, Insightful

    until the network administrators find a serious vulnerability and have to burn/press about 35602638023862 new cds to patch it.

  2. Um, what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I can hardly keep track of an ATM card, now you're expecting me to carry around a big honking CD all the time?

    Pass

  3. news? by mnbjhguyt · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ...says... it's talking... one bank will probably use... envisages...

    and from TFA: Banks eye bootable Linux CDs

    wake me up when something happens, ok?

  4. Interesting idea for a very tough problem by brendano · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This sounds like a great idea, provided that the Knoppix can be user-friendly enough to figure out how to boot up.

    There's really no surefire way to ensure that a user's harddrive-installed OS is secure for banking. Considering the staggering variety of adware/spyware/viruses on machines today, it must be quite easy for a malicious malware creator to make a program that hijacks name resolution (change DNS servers, or the HOSTS file) for perfect phishing, or they could install a keystroke logger, or whatever else. If they got their bank-website-hijacking malware on machines in whatever way all today's adware stuff gets on, they could easily phish thousands of bank transactions every day.

    The prevalence of malware seems to indicate that people can't control or trust the programs on their own hard drives. If that's the case, they can't trust any of their online interactions. Since Knoppix kills your harddrive and all its flexibility, it's much more secure.

    What would be funny is if more and more institutions started demanding the use of bootable OS's. Our PC's would be reduced to a BIOS, monitor, and keyboard ... reminds you of the Apple II days, where you had to boot half of the operating system off a floppy every time you turned on the computer.

    --
    -Brendan