Tag Archives: Bluetooth

Self-Checkout Skimmers Go Bluetooth

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This blog has featured several stories about payment card skimming devices designed to be placed over top of credit card terminals in self-checkout lanes at grocery stores and other retailers. Many readers have asked for more details about the electronics that power these so-called “overlay” skimmers. Here’s a look at one overlay skimmer equipped with Bluetooth technology that allows thieves to snarf swiped card data and PINs wirelessly using nothing more than a mobile phone. Continue reading Self-Checkout Skimmers Go Bluetooth→

Hackaday Prize Entry: An Open Bluetooth Switch Interface

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The theme of the last Hackaday Prize challenge was Assistive Technologies, and there is perhaps no assistive technology as desperately needed as a device to help people who can’t use common input devices. Using a keyboard, mouse, or touchscreen can be hard, but this Hackaday Prize project turns all these problems into a simple Bluetooth-enabled switch.

The BOSI – the Bluetooth Open Source Switch Interface – is, at its heart, just a big Bluetooth button inside a 3D-printed enclosure designed in Solidworks. These enclosures house a button connected to an Adafruit Bluefruit EZ-Key. Add a battery and a charging circuit, …read more

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Inside Arizona’s Pump Skimmer Scourge

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Crooks who deploy skimming devices made to steal payment card details from fuel station pumps don’t just target filling stations at random: They tend to focus on those that neglect to deploy various tools designed to minimize such scams, including security cameras, non-standard pump locks and tamper-proof security tape. But don’t take my word for it: Here’s a look at fuel station compromises in 2016 as documented by the state of Arizona, which has seen a dramatic spike in fuel skimming attacks over the past year. Continue reading Inside Arizona’s Pump Skimmer Scourge→

Inside Arizona’s Pump Skimmer Scourge

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Crooks who deploy skimming devices made to steal payment card details from fuel station pumps don’t just target filling stations at random: They tend to focus on those that neglect to deploy various tools designed to minimize such scams, including security cameras, non-standard pump locks and tamper-proof security tape. But don’t take my word for it: Here’s a look at fuel station compromises in 2016 as documented by the state of Arizona, which has seen a dramatic spike in fuel skimming attacks over the past year. Continue reading Inside Arizona’s Pump Skimmer Scourge→

Web Bluetooth: The New Hotness and Its Dangers

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Google’s most recent Chrome browser, version 53, includes trial support for Web Bluetooth, and it’s like the Wild West! JavaScript code, served to your browser, can now connect directly to your Bluetooth LE (BTLE) devices, with a whole bunch of caveats that we’ll make clear below.

On the one hand, this is awesome functionality. The browser is the most ubiquitous cross-platform operating system that the world has ever seen. You can serve a website to users running Windows, Linux, Android, iOS, or MacOS and run code on their machines without having to know if it’s a cellphone, a desktop, or …read more

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Fresh Bluetooth Developer Toolkit line tackles IoT security, interoperability

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The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) released several updates to its developer toolkit line-up, which enables developers to build smarter when creating things like mobile apps and low-cost beacons, as well as gateways that control IoT sensors. “What developers can do today with Bluetooth far surpasses what they could do just a few years ago,” said Steve Hegenderfer, Director of Developer Programs, Bluetooth SIG. “Whether it’s connecting a Bluetooth device to the web, using beacons … More → Continue reading Fresh Bluetooth Developer Toolkit line tackles IoT security, interoperability→