The most hated man on the internet. Lessons to learn

A while ago I was scouring Netflix and stumbled across the 2022 The most hated man on the internet docuseries. What’s that all about then? The show is about Hunter Moore and his isanyoneup.com website Wikipedia article, where abhorrent people uploaded naked / pornographic images, intended to sham...

OSINT your OT suppliers

There is much talk about supply chain security and reviewing your suppliers for cyber security. But how much information do they intentionally and unintentionally leak about your organisation online? We see this particularly in the industrial controls sector as its cyber security maturity is...

747 Hackathon

As is probably clear from our blog and public talks aviation cyber security is an area of huge interest to us. Some of us are also light aircraft pilots, so the crossover of two of our loves makes for some fascinating research. Over the last few years we’ve managed to get access to several...

What does the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure bill mean for me?

The UK’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport DCMS introduced a bill to Parliament yesterday. But what does that mean for IoT manufacturers and consumers? First, this bill has been a long time coming. Many people have been lobbying and working hard to create it. Industry and others with vested...

Breaking Samsung firmware, or turning your S8/S9/S10 into a DIY “Proxmark”

This post is a companion to the DEF CON 28 video available here Breaking the Firmware of Samsung’s NFC Chips Recently I have been looking into how to push the capabilities of my old smartphones beyond what you could traditionally do just by rooting it. Smartphones contain huge amounts of hardware...

Hacking, tracking, stealing and sinking ships

At Infosecurity Europe this year, we demonstrated multiple methods to interrupt the shipping industry, several of which haven’t been demonstrated in public before, to our knowledge. Some of these issues were simply through poor security hygiene on board, but others were linked to the protocols us...

Penetration Testing Requirements for GDPR

We get lots of people asking us what it is they need to have tested as a requirement for GDPR Compliance, so I've put this together to provide some clarity. This post is NOT a definitive guide to the General Data Protection Regulations. It is however, helpful, real world advice about what you...

The remote desktop puzzle. DFIR techniques for dealing with RDP Bitmap Cache

TL;DR How RDP Bitmap Cache can reveal user activity No RDP logs? How can we reconstruct RDP activity? How cached tiles can uncover insider threats Introduction A lot of people are aware of RDP and what its functions are. It’s known for providing remote access and making life easier for...

Take control of Cache-Control and local caching

TL;DR Caching speeds up website content delivery What caching directives are and how to use them The No-cache directive does not prevent caching The No-store directiveprevents caching Introduction The HTTP Cache-Control header is sometimes misunderstood. It's important because it is used to speci...

New mandatory USCG cyber regulations. What you need to know

TL;DR US Coast Guard introduces mandatory new Marine Transportation System cybersecurity requirements They take effect on July 16, 2025, and training must begin by July 17, 2025 US flagged large commercial vessels affected Cybersecurity Officers CySO need to be appointed Penetration testing of...

The unexpected effects of GPS spoofing on aviation safety

GPS is one service in the Global Navigation Satellite System GNSS. Others include Russia’s GLONASS and the EU’s Galileo constellations. These are all used to provide Position, Navigation, and Timing PNT to civilian users including commercial aircraft. GPS was actually designed to have military...

Scorpion CBS show. Plane hack

Having got on a bit of a roll with dismantling plane hacking in the media with the MH370 documentary critique, it’s probably time to tear apart the pilot episode of Scorpion from 2014. Here’s a link to the relevant part of the show: Why? It’s clearly just an entertainment show, so why bother...

Attacking Encrypted HTTP Communications

TL;DR The Reolink RLC-520A PoE camera obfuscates its HTTP communication by encrypting the POST body data. This level of security does defend against opportunistic attackers but falls short when defending against persistent attackers. Introduction Different embedded devices have their own take on...

CMC Electronics EFB breakout vulnerability

We’ve been finding vulnerabilities in electronic flight bags for a few years now. Disclosure response from the vendors involved has varied from excellent to radio silence. In every case we have tried extremely hard to engage with the vendors involved, even where we were ignored. We asked friendly...

Totally Pwning the Tapplock Smart Lock

TL;DR – How to open a Tapplock over BLE in under two seconds: Totally Pwning the Tapplock Smart Lock A couple of weekends ago, a YouTuber called JerryRigEverything posted a teardown of a “smart” padlock, called the Tapplock. He discovered that, using a sticky GoPro mount, he could remove the back...

‘Hacking’ the Nespresso Prodigio and Jura E8 coffee machines

You’ll probably know by now that I have a particular interest in the security of IoT coffee machines and tea kettles. Sometimes security is so poor that we have to laugh. Such simple security issues. Now, when I’m feeling lazy and possibly a bit hung over, I really can’t be bothered to make coffe...

Preparing for the EU Radio Equipment Directive security requirements

TL;DR UK & EU IoT vendors have more security regulation coming in Applies to all wireless devices Comes into force 1st August 2025 It may be absorbed into the Cyber Resilience Act From 1st August 2025, mandatory cybersecurity requirements come into effect under the EU’s Radio Equipment Directive...

Cybersecurity communities. Small hacker groups, big impact

TL;DR Cybersecurity communities and groups are an excellent opportunity to network and learn There are OWASP, DEF CON, 2600, university hacking societies, Meetup communities and more to choose from They provide workshops, talks, and practical learning opportunities benefiting both newcomers and...

DNSSEC NSEC. The accidental treasure map to your subdomains

TL;DR: DNSSEC secures DNS but may unintentionally expose domain structures via NSEC/NSEC3 records, enabling zone walking to enumerate subdomains. NSEC openly lists domain names, making enumeration easy. NSEC3 hashes names, making enumeration harder, but attackers can still crack weak...

A tale of enumeration, and why pen testing can’t be automated

TL;DR In an engagement we found an open directory on the internet belonging to our client By enumerating it we found a zip archive with a configuration file holding usernames and passwords That file gave us access to the client’s ArcGIS instance This contained a treasure trove of information abou...

Tackling AI threats. Advanced DFIR methods and tools for deepfake detection

TL; DR AI-generated documents, videos and more pose significant challenges for DFIR DFIR teams can harness innovative detection strategies and tooling Digital fingerprinting and watermarking, AI-powered and behavioural analyses Hardware-based forensics and image-specific forensic techniques...

How easily access cards can be cloned and why your PACS might be vulnerable

TL;DR Access cards can be cloned There are practical measures to make card cloning difficult Practical guidance on how these systems work and why you should make sure they’re configured right What is a physical access control system? A physical access control system, or PACS, is the system that...

Making sure your door access control system is secure: Top 5 things to check

Your door access control system aka a physical access control system or PACS, also referred to as RFID cards or ‘swipe’ cards often have a poor reputation for being vulnerable to cloning attacks. Here’s the thing: it’s generally possible to configure your system to be very resistant to card...

Proroute H685 4G router vulnerabilities

TL;DR Two vulnerabilities on the Proroute H685t-w 4G Router Authenticated command injection is possible through the admin interface Reflected Cross Site-Scripting is possible through the admin interface Patch any routers to revision 3.2.335 or higher Vulnerability 1: Command Injection on Proroute...

Smart home security advice. Ring, SimpliSafe, Swann, and Yale

Introduction This guide covers the security of smart home security products from Ring, Yale, Swann, and SimpliSafe. Whether you're looking to monitor your property remotely, enhance your home's security, or see who’s at the front door, this guide will provide you with valuable insights. We have...

Living off the land with Bluetooth PAN

TL:DR Bluetooth is enabled by default on the majority of Windows laptops Bluetooth PAN can be used to bridge connections locally between a client laptop and attacking device Attackers can use Microsoft native SSH client to forward out internal network traffic Windows native SSH is accessible to...

The big play of autonomous vehicles

TL;DR The benefits of autonomous vehicles may not yet be for us consumers There are other areas where autonomy can benefit auto manufacturers and others Having your autonomous car drive you home from the bar may be some way off yet! Car manufacturers and technology startups make a big play of...

It’s always DNS, here’s why…

Introduction Theres an old adage in network and Internet support: When something breaks in any network "it was DNS". Sadly its usually true. …or at least it is when you have certain timeouts, or when a company you used to work for moves from the stable Unix based DNS to a Windows based one and th...

Finding forensics breadcrumbs in Android image storage

Introduction Our digital forensics work is wide and varied. Often there’s very little that we can talk about in the public domain, so when I find something that we can share I get a bit excited. In this post I’ll be talking about image scanning apps, and how to reverse engineer them to pinpoint...

Gumtree – leaking your data and not really listening

Sometimes finding vulnerabilities is as simple as… just looking. TL;DR 1. Gumtree is a UK-based site where users can advertise items for sale. 2. It leaked the PII of sellers to other users of the site within the HTML source of the adverts. Email address, postcode, GPS location, and the seller’s...

Hiding behind a password

What do your passwords say about you? It’s surprisingly personal. User generated passwords can reveal more than you might expect, including frustration, humour, and even how someone feels about their job. My password manager database has over 350 entries. I have chosen or generated all of them wi...

The first 24 hours of a cyber incident. A practical playbook

TL;DR The first 24 hours after a cyber incident are critical for containment and recovery. Small and medium-sized businesses SMBs often lack resources, but swift action is still possible. This playbook provides clear steps to follow in the heat of a breach: who to contact, what to do, and how to...

ICS testing best results. Hint: Blend your approach

TL;DR Onsite ICS testing is risk averse Laboratory ICS device testing uncovers more A blended approach is key How that works Demonstrable benefits Introduction For safety’s sake onsite ICS testing adopts a risk averse approach, even if scheduled during downtime or a maintenance period. It’s vital...

10 Non-tech things you wish you had done after being breached

TL;DR Non-tech aspects to breach follow-up are often overlooked but essential NDAs, supply chain, and third party contracts and obligations should be reviewed Reviewing communication protocols and employee training increases resilience Looking after, and retaining your people improves recovery fo...

You lost your iPhone, but it’s locked. That’s fine, right?

TL;DR Default iOS configuration leaves your locked device vulnerable Ensure your emergency contacts are set. Use ‘FindMy’ to track / wipe lost devices. Take regular backups. Consider turning off the lock screen message previews. Introduction Picture this: you've lost your iPhone. Luckily, it's...

How to enhance the security of your social media accounts

TL;DR Strong passwords : Use a password manager. Multi-factor authentication MFA : MFA requires multiple forms of identification, adding an extra layer of security. This makes it harder for unauthorised users to gain access even if they have your password. Phishing awareness : Stay alert to...

OPSEC failures when threat hunting

Over the last few years I’ve carried out a lot of phishing, and have some interesting observations on how organisations respond. However, the purpose of this blog is to highlight a worrying and amusing trend in response actions taken by the blue team and researchers when threat hunting a phishing...

Living off the land, AD CS style

Introduction Unless you have been living under a rock for the last year or so, Active Directory Certificate Services AD CS abuse continues to be a hot topic in offensive security, ever since the excellent research released by Will Schroeder @harmj0y and Lee Christensen @tifkin. I, like many, have...

Your cloud? My cloud now

A true story on taking over a client’s Azure tenant via a successful phish. TL;DR A tempting phish got lots of users to disclose their passwords, and a lack of training resulted in the victims accepting the Microsoft push-based multi-factor authentication. This resulted in gaining access to Slack...

Time based username enumeration

Back in the day, it used to be easy to enumerate email addresses from forgotten password forms. Differences in the response made it easy to check if accounts existed. After that, you could brute force the password if there weren’t lockouts in place, or if there were, you could lockout a lot of us...

Limiting your exposure to location data resellers

Location data is valuable, just ask Huq Industries, who make a living out of selling your location information, then found that the apps they bought it from hadn’t asked the end users permission to have it! Naughty! The organisations they sell it to use it for better marketing, to get a better...

Smart lighting security

Smart lighting systems create great opportunity for improved efficiency, cost savings and easy management. The long lifespan and low power requirement of LED luminaires and lamps means that it’s worth investing in replacing older fluorescent and incandescent lighting. RJ45 connections delivering...

From Minecraft to Metasploit. Game hacking could start your cyber security career

Human beings are curious. Give a computer game to a kid and it’s only a matter of time before they get bored with the constraints of the gameplay and start trying novel things. This is encouraged by a lot of game developers by hiding Easter eggs in hard to reach locations. Once the confines have...

New cybersecurity rules for smart heat pump manufacturers

TL;DR Smart heat pumps face new UK cybersecurity rules Must meet ETSI EN 303 645 under the Smart Secure Electricity Systems programme Applies to most domestic heat devices up to 45 kW Compliance deadline expected to be late 2026 / early 2027 Aims to protect consumers, data, and the national grid...

PCI DSS. Where to start?

TL;DR Determine your role: Merchant or service provider Determine your level and requirements Identify your validation method: SAQ or RoC Use the PCI website Introduction The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, or PCI DSS, outlines essential requirements for protecting both you and your...

Testing the security of CCTV systems

TL;DR CCTV is often overlooked; ‘shadow tech’ whose security isn’t as carefully reviewed as core IT assets It is often a responsibility for facilities managers who may have little experience of cyber security Security of the hardware and software of some CCTV camera brands is sorely lacking A...

Insights and highlights from DEF CON 32

TL; DR Event Dates : August 8-11, 2024, in Las Vegas. PTP Presentations : Windows Hello : Our Ceri Coburn with Outsider Security's Dirk-Jan Mollema revealed vulnerabilities in biometric authentication. Maritime Security : Paul Brownridge discussed vulnerabilities in maritime systems and...

Have you been compromised?

Imagine the scenario… A nation state recruits an asset / spy at age 18. Their education and living expenses are fully funded, all with the aim of getting them a job at a target organisation. All goes to plan, on paper they’re a good fit and they get a low profile graduate role in the company. Lif...

To Pay or Not to Pay? That is the Ransomware question

During a review of a client’s incident response capabilities the discussion turned to ransomware and strategies for handling it. The client’s board-level view was that if they were unable to restore their systems they would pay-up. They’d gone so far as considering setting up a cryptocurrency...

A masterclass in responding to vulnerability disclosure: The Buddi app and tracker

The Buddi tracker is used for tracking elderly and vulnerable people. It’s a GPS/GSM-based clip-on device that reports wearer position to an app via a platform. It means that the wearer can easily be found by their carer or the emergency services, should they become lost and unable to make their...