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back to article Researchers make SHODAN of the skies to probe internet-of-things

A clan of security geeks are flying a ZigBee-sniffing drone to map online internet-of-things things universe in what they hope will be the SHODAN of electronic junk. The project run by a team at the Texas-based firm Praetorian is being conducted in researchers' free time and hopes to explore the functionality and security …

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  1. Doctor_Wibble
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    What it will do for the industry?

    Sounds like it will do exactly what the thing it emulates does - compiles a list for the script kiddies to use. This basic bit of time-consuming tedium is one thing that helped to slow them down. It's not secret but make them work for it ffs.

    Previously people would have to take the time to physically visit neighbourhoods to find clumps of IoT devices, now they don't have to bother. On the one hand I don't particularly care if someone's web-enabled cheese gets pwned but on the other I don't want hordes of spotty teenagers clustered near my house just because a neighbour happens to be monumentally gullible.

    Trouble doing it in the UK though, assuming I read the regs correctly even if I don't have the right to shoot it down.

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    1. Anonymous Coward
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      Anonymous Coward

      Re: What it will do for the industry?

      Perhaps it's a better idea to arm the drone with phasers to automatically blast all vulnerable devices to kingdom come.

      1 0 Reply
      1. Doctor_Wibble
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        Re: What it will do for the industry?

        > blast all vulnerable devices to kingdom come.

        This suggestion is not without merit; such devices would be far less easy to compromise after this course of treatment, even if there is a slight reduction in functionality - which is surely an acceptably small price to pay for improved security.

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        1. Mark 85
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          Re: What it will do for the industry?

          And perhaps as collateral damage, a few idiots will join said devices on the trip???

          0 0 Reply
  2. Terry Cloth

    War-flying?

    2 0 Reply

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