Comments on: How an ancient printer can spill your most intimate secrets http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/2010/08/ancient-printer-spill-intimate-secrets/ The official Derren Brown Blog Tue, 21 Feb 2012 16:25:10 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1 By: Ron L Hubbard http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/2010/08/ancient-printer-spill-intimate-secrets/#comment-63423 Ron L Hubbard Sun, 22 Aug 2010 18:18:06 +0000 http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/?p=13674#comment-63423 Reminds me of a spy story from the cold war involving agents beaming directional microwaves across the street to detect which characters were being typed by embassy secretaries using golf-ball typewriters. Reminds me of a spy story from the cold war involving agents beaming directional microwaves across the street to detect which characters were being typed by embassy secretaries using golf-ball typewriters.

]]> By: alan http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/2010/08/ancient-printer-spill-intimate-secrets/#comment-63243 alan Tue, 17 Aug 2010 13:11:21 +0000 http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/?p=13674#comment-63243 Isn’t this just replicating the way we communicate, via sounds passed between individuals? We think something. Encode that as a sounds associated with that notion. Verbalize it. Hear it. Then decode that into hopefully the same thought. Unfortunately, no two of us are using cipher books that match. Isn’t this just replicating the way we communicate, via sounds passed between individuals?
We think something. Encode that as a sounds associated with that notion. Verbalize it. Hear it. Then decode that into hopefully the same thought. Unfortunately, no two of us are using cipher books that match.

]]> By: Bletherskite http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/2010/08/ancient-printer-spill-intimate-secrets/#comment-63210 Bletherskite Mon, 16 Aug 2010 15:51:54 +0000 http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/?p=13674#comment-63210 oops, or possibly "good". oops, or possibly “good”.

]]> By: Bletherskite http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/2010/08/ancient-printer-spill-intimate-secrets/#comment-63209 Bletherskite Mon, 16 Aug 2010 15:51:18 +0000 http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/?p=13674#comment-63209 Hehe! Free payphone calls trick we used to do round our way was the "quick nothing". Basically it worked on the old round dial phones - you would dial the number and wait for the person to answer, as soon as the phone was lifted you quickly dialled '0' and you could get the call for free for as long as you liked. Ah, the goold old days! :-D Hehe! Free payphone calls trick we used to do round our way was the “quick nothing”.

Basically it worked on the old round dial phones – you would dial the number and wait for the person to answer, as soon as the phone was lifted you quickly dialled ’0′ and you could get the call for free for as long as you liked.

Ah, the goold old days! :-D

]]> By: roz http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/2010/08/ancient-printer-spill-intimate-secrets/#comment-63174 roz Sun, 15 Aug 2010 19:46:12 +0000 http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/?p=13674#comment-63174 this reminds me of how some people usta get free phone calls by playing a recording into the receiver of coins dropping into a pay phone1 this reminds me of how some people usta get free phone calls by playing a recording into the receiver of coins dropping into a pay phone1

]]> By: Radu C http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/2010/08/ancient-printer-spill-intimate-secrets/#comment-63166 Radu C Sun, 15 Aug 2010 13:31:13 +0000 http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/?p=13674#comment-63166 When I read "ancient", I was expecting some Greek thing on the bottom of the Adriatic, not a dot matrix printer. Extending the dot matrix printer side-channel attack idea, anything that can be profiled (produces certain sounds for certain operations and they don't vary much for a given repeatable operation) and be attacked using this or similar method. Some heuristics may be needed if more than one operation produces a sound or set of sounds (that is the math function used to map things is not surjective). If my keyboard procudes slightly distinctive sounds for each and every key when the keys are pressed, then you can listen to everything I type. When I read “ancient”, I was expecting some Greek thing on the bottom of the Adriatic, not a dot matrix printer. Extending the dot matrix printer side-channel attack idea, anything that can be profiled (produces certain sounds for certain operations and they don’t vary much for a given repeatable operation) and be attacked using this or similar method. Some heuristics may be needed if more than one operation produces a sound or set of sounds (that is the math function used to map things is not surjective). If my keyboard procudes slightly distinctive sounds for each and every key when the keys are pressed, then you can listen to everything I type.

]]> By: Helena http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/2010/08/ancient-printer-spill-intimate-secrets/#comment-63153 Helena Sun, 15 Aug 2010 07:59:45 +0000 http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/?p=13674#comment-63153 Wow! I'm armed and ready with my dictaphone! Wow! I’m armed and ready with my dictaphone!

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