Fire detection system been pwned? You’re not going to sea

TL;DR Hardcoded SSH and VNC credentials found on Consilium Salwico CS5000 panels SSH access allows OS-level interaction, and VNC access gives UI control It may be possible to disable the fire detection system Attempts to disclose vulnerability to Consilium multiple times since 2022 Consilium...

How to load unsigned or fake-signed apps on iOS

TL;DR Issues commonly arise when clients provide an application which is unsigned or does not meet device requirements. Installing an application can be challenging without a Mac, access to Xcode or if the client is having trouble signing the application manually as this is normally done by the a...

A dive into the Rockchip Bootloader

TL;DR Rockchip has a structured sequence of bootloaders. Using various plugs can allow access to the MCU’s RAM and storage. There are many utilities to allow reading of information from the MCU. Use this guide to access and reverse engineer bootloaders. Introduction Rockchip are a Chinese company...

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...

Glastonbury ticket hijack vulnerability fixed

The Glastonbury ticket website was vulnerable to a relatively simple attack that that allowed ticket theft and data leakage. What’s the issue? An attacker could scrape collaborative ticket buying information e.g. on Reddit to gather people’s details, use a flaw in the registration process and...

HUMINT in a cyber world

TL;DR HUMINT / Human Intelligence is gathered from a person in the location in question. It’s the sort of information we think of in the context of spying. A modern intelligence apparatus is multi-discipline with many different collection methods. HUMINT sources include officers, agents, diplomat...

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...

Die Hard 2. Or how not to hack airplanes

How could I criticise possibly the best action movie series of all time? Well, it’s to help dispel myths about hacking planes. TV shows and films help set a narrative that is hard to shift around aviation cyber, giving the travelling public a misleading view of their security when flying. So let’...

EFB ePIL. Pinching passenger PII from pilots

TL;DR The Passenger Information List PIL is often now available on EFBs and crew devices. It stores information such as passenger names, seat numbers, and customer services information. Digital versions of the PIL enable crew to offer more bespoke customer service Information on a PIL is differen...

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...

Don’t get burnt on pay day. How to buy IoT gadgets sensibly

As it’s the end of the month, and pay day for many, I thought some timely advice would be helpful for people itching to spend their money on IoT gadgets. It’s not all bad. While many manufacturers happily continue to fill shelves with dross, we know plenty of responsible companies whose products...

Hacking train passenger Wi-Fi

After speaking about Wi-Fi security at a rail industry conference last week, it struck me that very insecure passenger networks are making their way on to trains. So, here’s a quick check list for making sure your pax Wi-Fi network is secure. Similar checks could be applied to your guest network ...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

Impacts on ICS from the updated Cyber Assessment Framework (CAF)

NCSC has released an update of the Cyber Assessment Framework CAF. The CAF represents where the rubber hits the road for the UK’s NIS regulations. TL;DR The NCSC CAF has been updated to version 3.2. There has been a material change to three aspects of the CAF. The changes are broadly sensible 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...

Exposed Gits: 10 Years on

Nearly 10 years ago my colleague wrote a cracking post on exposed Git repositories. 10 years is a long time in cyber security, but you’d be surprised how many things you thought should have gone extinct that haven’t. A prime example is a recent finding of a handful of exposed .git repositories. A...

Monetising hacking by shorting commodity shipments

I’m continually asked by the maritime industry about the motivations of hackers. “Why would anyone hack us, we operate ships?” It strikes me that many of the public and a lot of maritime businesses still think of the ‘hacker’ as a solo operator in a dark hoodie in a basement of their parents’...

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...

SkyFail. 6 million routers left exposed

Sky broadband had a significant security flaw in around 6 million of their customer routers that would allow remote compromise of home networks. When informed about it, they took nearly 18 months to fully fix the problem. TL;DR Around 6 million Sky routers were vulnerable to a DNS rebinding...

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...

Securing mobile devices. A timely reminder

While home working might now be the norm for some, more and more people are going back to their place of work on a more regular basis. If you’re commuting again or if you’re responsible for securing your people’s devices it’s a good idea to revisit and review your security admin for mobile device...

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...

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...

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...

Don’t use corporate email for your personal life

TL;DR People use whatever is convenient. Segregation of work and personal matters is a key part of security. Using corporate addresses tramples on this separation. Corporate email addresses should be treated with the same care as sensitive corporate information. Create an Acceptable Use Policy th...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

What goes into testing a ship?

TL;DR Testing a ship involves identifying and mitigating cybersecurity risks using the "Identify, Prevent, Detect, Respond, Recover" framework. Guidelines include MSC.42898, BIMCO, IACS UR E26/E27, and ISO standards. New builds and existing vessels require proper documentation and network securit...

Key safe security, or the lack of it

A few years back we put a key safe into our office. Previously, we had used a very simple locked cabinet to ensure keys were returned, as before that, keys kept being accidentally taken home. There’s no data of significance kept at the office. Everything is hosted elsewhere, but we could do witho...

Leave the World Behind, or don’t

I watched Leave the World Behind on Netflix recently. I was intrigued as the trailers showed an oil tanker crashing on to a beach. It was implied that it had been hacked and someone had taken control of it. Shipping security is something we know quite a bit about, having been asked to hack a larg...

Navigating the perilous waters of conference invitations

TL:DR Being asked to speak at events is great …except when it looks like a scam or a phishing attempt This is walkthrough of my experience If you think it’s a scam, it probably is Its a typical Sunday evening, and as Im gearing up for the week ahead and an interesting email lands in my inbox. The...

Helping a banking fraud victim

A few months ago an elderly friend of a friend asked for some help. They had been scammed and had £10K stolen. Was there anything I could do to help? This wasn’t going to be a pleasant task: recovering monies stolen as a result of banking fraud is all but impossible. I was going to have to explai...

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...

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...

Man Climbs Severn Bridge. Your office is twice as easy and half as scary

So you think no one would ever sneak into your business? Think Again. The man who climbed the Severn Bridge and broke into the Big Brother house seems to have method to his madness. Here’s why. When I describe Social Engineering to some I get a common response: “Yeah, but who would ever do that i...

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...

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...

How I became a Cyber Essentials Plus assessor

TL;DR What is Cyber Essentials and why does it matter? The role of Cyber Essentials CE and Cyber Essentials Plus CE+ assessors in protecting UK businesses The difference between a CE and CE+ assessor Becoming a CE assessor Becoming a CE+ assessor Challenges I faced and tips for success Introducti...

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...

PCI DSS v4.0 Evidence and documentation requirements checklist

TL;DR PCI DSS is complex and challenging Review the 12 top level controls Arm yourself with this checklist to help you navigate it Introduction PCI DSS v4.0 is challenging for a number of reasons: increased complexity, future-dated requirements, high costs and resource demands, vendor management...

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...

How we helped expose a £12 million rental scam

TL;DR We helped Channel 4 with trying to track down rental scammers. We are not the police so we could only take it so far and any proving guilt or innocence would be a police matter. We saw organised approaches and elaborate setups. A lot of technical and money laundering techniques were needed...

Scanning for security.txt files

Introduction RFC 9116 was written by E. Foudil and Y. Shafranovich and left draft status in April 2022. This RFC formally defines the unofficial security.txt file that has been an unofficial standard for many years, initially created back in 2017 and documented at . The security.txt file provides...