Re: Modern hw-killing virus feasible

[Dom De Vitto <dom () DEVITTO COM>]

Feasible? Yes, depending on hardware that can be made to break itself.
Anyone else remember the BBC micro?
When they brought the first BBC masters, the circiutry had a software
switchable charger for the battery.  Guess what happened if you hit the
register to start the charger, then walk away.....boom. No more computer.

I heard that such a trojan/virus existed (possibly even to thwart
software pirates)...

Aren't there mobos out there that support 'software overclocking'...?
:-)
Dom
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  Dom De Vitto                              Secure Technologies Ltd. 
  mailto:dom () devitto com                       Mob. +44 7971 589 201  
  http://www.devitto.com                       Fax. +44 8700 548 750  
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 | -----Original Message-----
 | From: VULN-DEV List [mailto:VULN-DEV () securityfocus com]On Behalf Of Bart
 | Sent: 06 March 2001 18:57
 | To: VULN-DEV () securityfocus com
 | Subject: Re: Modern hw-killing virus feasible
 | 
 | 
 | Hi,
 | 
 | Doesn't seem anything really new. The CIH Virus
 |  http://vil.mcafee.com/dispVirus.asp?virus_k=10300&; ) written in 1998 did
 | something like what you are describing. On a set date it tried 
 | to flash the
 | bios with garbage, making the infected pc unable to boot.
 | 
 | Alot of hardware can probably be killed this way, as a lot of 
 | hardware these
 | days have flashable eeprom's. The only problem is is that they 
 | have various
 | ways of flashing the eeprom, thus making it (virtually) impossible for a
 | virus to have a generic (flash-)payload for a lot of hardware.
 | 
 | Kind Regards,
 | 
 | Bart
 | 
 | > -----Oorspronkelijk bericht-----
 | > Van: VULN-DEV List [mailto:VULN-DEV () SECURITYFOCUS COM]Namens Pavel
 | > Machek
 | > Verzonden: maandag 5 maart 2001 23:34
 | > Aan: VULN-DEV () SECURITYFOCUS COM
 | > Onderwerp: Modern hw-killing virus feasible
 | >
 | >
 | >  Hi!
 | >
 | >  Current DVD-regioning system provides *very* easy possibility for
 | >  virus to render hardware unusable. Current DVD-roms allow setting
 | >  DVD region for limited number of times.
 | >
 | >  Imagine virus, that switches DVD between japan-region and asia-region
 | >  as many times as it can. It would leave DVD locked either to japan or
 | >  asia, effectively making it unusable for european/us citizen.
 | >
 | >  Long time ago, rumors went that it is possible to kill harddrive by
 | >  software. Then, old monitors could be damaged by software by
 | >  missprograming them (but damage would take lot of time). Now DVDs
 | >  provide effective way for software making them unusable. Pretty sad.
 | >
 | >                                                                Pavel
 | >
 | > --
 | > I'm pavel () ucw cz. "In my country we have almost anarchy and I 
 | don't care."
 | > Panos Katsaloulis describing me w.r.t. patents at discuss () linmodems org
 | >
 |