Scott Pinzon from security website Watchguard has an amusing yet frightening tale about the security issues associated with the use of infrared in garage door openers, remote automobile locks and hotel room television remote controls.

I don't want to spoil the joy of reading his posting, but in one instance a security expert/hacker figured out the reset command for a certain car brand, drove over to a dealer lot at night and tested his theory.

What happened?

"At nighttime, it's actually a scary sound to hear 50 cars unlock at once."

Another fun experiment is to use the television in a hotel room to hack the hotel's network. Not only would it allow a hacker to alter his bill, he could also mess with the hotel's on demand TV system. Free porn for everybody, whether you want it or not.

Photo credit: Layton Findlater

Tags: hack, hacking, hacker, infra red

27 Jul 2005