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Russian Federal Guard Service "Upgrades" To Electric Typewriters
Razgorov Prikazka writes "The Russian Federal Guard Service (FSO), who are in charge of protecting high level politicians like president Putin (amongst others), are 'upgrading' to electric typewriters for writing sensitive documents. They have found out that computers pose a security risk and this is their answer to it. On first sight this seems like a very pragmatic and cost-efficient thing to do. However, the FSO has its roots in the KGB and those were the ones who placed keystroke loggers on the popular IBM Selectric electric typewriter 40 years ago! So how much safer does this make them?"
I suspect having a device that has only one purpose, as compared to a computer, it is much less likely to be compromised and much easier to detect.
Some people die at 25 and aren't buried until 75. -Benjamin Franklin
It's probably cheaper than trying to out-bid American hipsters for old Remington typewriters.
THL phish sticks
To place a keylogger on a typewriter you need physical access to the typewriter... to place a keylogger on a computer you need the internet...
I can see the advantage...
When your opponent has access to your hardware, you've already lost. That's true whether its a mechanical typewriter, electric typewriter, or a computer.
No written communications. This whole writing and reading thing is overrated, and apparently can be dangerous.
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
http://www.nsa.gov/public_info/_files/cryptologic_histories/Learning_from_the_Enemy.pdf
I was driving by Fort Meade today and I heard a collective scream of "PUUUUUTTTTTIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!" coming from the NSA headquarters. Every single PRISM employee screamed in agony.
sudo make me a sandwich
I remember reading a slashdot story years ago where researchers were able to determine which keys on a computer keyboard were pressed just by the sound they produced mechanically. I would think it would be even easier to use this technique against a typewriter.
Better known as 318230.
The Ball-type IBM Selectric typewriters had a flaw that made it easy to tell what was being said just by the sound and delay between characters. You didn't even have to have the listening device in the typewriter, it could be across the room if it was "directional" enough.
While you could probably decode a lever-type typewriter's activity from just a good sound recording, it's probably much harder.
Oh, and as for trying to decode an inkjet- or thermal- electric typewriters just by the noise, "good luck with that."
Of course, today, if you can plant spy equipment in the room where the person is typing and you are good and well-funded, you don't need to rely on the noise the typewriter makes. Or, to put it another way, if you have a determined adversary who is significantly better than you, it's probably "game over" before the game even begins.
Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.
However, the FSO has its roots in the KGB and those were the ones who placed keystroke loggers on the popular IBM Selectric electric typewriter 40 years ago! So how much safer does this make them?
"Somewhat".
If your adversary has physical access to any piece of hardware, it's impossible to secure. Period. One can install a keystroke logger on a modern computer keyboard as well. Switching to non-networked, 'dumb', electric typewriters doesn't block this avenue for attack.
On the other hand, depending on the typewriter's features, it will be very difficult or impossible to remotely compromise, or to compromise using non-hardware approaches. Entire classes of attacks are rendered irrelevant.
To be fair, this does introduce some new potential avenues for attack--increased physical document handling means additional risks related to moving and securing bits of paper.
~Idarubicin
"The Russian Federal Guard Service (FSO), who are in charge of protecting high level politicians like president Putin (amongst others), are 'upgrading' to electric typewriters for writing sensitive documents. They have found out that computers pose a security risk and this is their answer to it. On first sight this seems like a very pragmatic and cost-efficient thing to do.
This kind of reminds me of the Colonial solution to Cylon infiltration in the re-imagined BSG TV series. Obviously not perfect, but also simple and good enough. It is not something we in the U.S. - with so much resources to waste (and fall into further debt) would think about.
However, the FSO has its roots in the KGB and those were the ones who placed keystroke loggers on the popular IBM Selectric electric typewriter 40 years ago! So how much safer does this make them?"
It makes them safer from UNWANTED/EXTERNAL infiltration. Infiltration by them is just fine. In the world of political/military security and intelligence, safety does not mean impenetrability. It means resilient to infiltration that you do not want. This is a completely different requirement from the requirement of "safety" as understood in the commercial/private sector.
Have gnu, will travel.
A while back someone did some research and published it on keystroke logging via audio capture. They found they were able to reliably determine what someone was typing just from the sound of their typing. I have to imagine that would work here.
http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2005/09/14_key.shtml
Though, maybe they also run white noise generators in the office?
"I opened my eyes, and everything went dark again"
http://www.snopes.com/business/genius/spacepen.asp
1 pencils are a FIRE HAZARD in space
2 the pen in question was developed by Fisher and sold to NASA (and the russian counterpart)
Any person using FTFY or editing my postings agrees to a US$50.00 charge
Pre-flight instructions for passengers about to depart Russian airports:
Please turn off all electronic devices, including mobile phones, laptop computers, tablet computers and electric typewriters...
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
In this modern era many people forget that typewriters had a *huge* security hole. The ink ribbons they used, in the right hands, were practically a "tape backup" of everything typed at that typewriter.
A record of all keystrokes is stored on the mylar ink tape used in the Selectric. You need to incinerate the ink cartridge after use to keep things secure.
Would you believe that Maxwell Smart (agent 86) figured that out years ago while working for Control. Not only computers but shoe phones pose a security risk. That's why we have Cell phone and not Shoe phones. The only way to have secure communications is to use the "Cone of Silence" when discussing anything of importance.
Stuxnet jumped the air gap just fine via jump drives and other sneakernet tech.
Well.. maybe. Or Maybe not. But Definitely not sort of.
... is always people. Even if is just by stupidity (like going to one of those meetings with a cellphone), but could be plain malice, double agents or blackmailed "safe" people (and with all the data of the world you have plenty of material to blackmail anyone).
And thats the most worrying thing about NSA and associates snooping, you are getting 5 millon extra vulnerabilities in everything that surrounds all your data.
I think it is right time to train pigeons.
joined by quantum entanglement and you can send messages across vast distances like they do in Fringe across universes.
Jesus was a compassionate social conservative who called individuals to sin no more.
You don't need to install a keylogger, it already has one built in; the ribbon.
That's where social engineering comes in. You call up the grunt employees and start saying big words like 'firmware update' until they just start doing whatever you tell them to.