Hackers Break Currency Validator To Pass Any Paper As Valid Euro

Trailrunner7 writes "If espionage is the world's second-oldest profession, counterfeiting may be in the running to be third on that list. People have been trying to forge currency for just about as long as currency has been circulating, and anti-counterfeiting methods have tried to keep pace with the state of the art. The anti-counterfeiting technology in use today of course relies on computers and software, and like all software, it has bugs, as researchers at IOActive discovered when they reverse-engineered the firmware in a popular Euro currency verifier and found that they could insert their own firmware and force the machine to verify any piece of paper as a valid Euro note. 'The impact is obvious. An attacker with temporary physical access to the device could install customized firmware and cause the device to accept counterfeit money. Taking into account the types of places where these devices are usually deployed (shops, mall, offices, etc.) this scenario is more than feasible.'"

Comments

Firmware update? Unlikely.

[mveloso]

I doubt that you'd be able to hang around a cash register with a serial cable and update some device's firmware without someone noticing. At that point why not just update the cash register's firmware and have it give you money directly?

Re:Firmware update? Unlikely.

[mcrbids]

All you have to do is get a technician costume. You know, a big, black bag with lots of tools in it, perhaps a utility belt, a button-up, short-sleeve shirt with a generic company logo on it. Walk up to the unit with a slightly bored expression, casually pull out your cable, and get to work. Pay no attention to anybody around you.

Chances are, you just might get away with it.

SOURCE: I watched Burn Notice a few times.

Second-oldest profession FTFY

[Anonymous Coward]

Politics is the worlds second oldest profession, noted for it's uncanny likeness to the first.