Pod slurping
Encyclopedia
Pod slurping is the act of using a portable data storage device
such as an iPod
digital audio player to illicitly download large quantities of confidential data by directly plugging it into a computer where the data
is held, and which may be on the inside of a firewall
.
There has been some work in the development of fixes to the problem, including a number of third-party
security products that allow companies to set security policies related to USB
device use, and features within operating system
s that allow IT administrators or users to disable the USB port altogether. Unix
-based or Unix-like
systems can easily prevent users from mount
ing storage devices, and Microsoft
has released instructions for preventing users from installing USB mass storage device
s on its operating systems.
Additional measures include physical obstruction of the USB ports, with measures ranging from the simple filling of ports with epoxy resin to commercial solutions which deposit a lockable plug into the port.
Data storage device
thumb|200px|right|A reel-to-reel tape recorder .The magnetic tape is a data storage medium. The recorder is data storage equipment using a portable medium to store the data....
such as an iPod
IPod
iPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle...
digital audio player to illicitly download large quantities of confidential data by directly plugging it into a computer where the data
Data
The term data refers to qualitative or quantitative attributes of a variable or set of variables. Data are typically the results of measurements and can be the basis of graphs, images, or observations of a set of variables. Data are often viewed as the lowest level of abstraction from which...
is held, and which may be on the inside of a firewall
Firewall (computing)
A firewall is a device or set of devices designed to permit or deny network transmissions based upon a set of rules and is frequently used to protect networks from unauthorized access while permitting legitimate communications to pass....
.
There has been some work in the development of fixes to the problem, including a number of third-party
Third-party software component
In computer programming, a third-party software component is a reusable software component developed to be either freely distributed or sold by an entity other than the original vendor of the development platform...
security products that allow companies to set security policies related to USB
Universal Serial Bus
USB is an industry standard developed in the mid-1990s that defines the cables, connectors and protocols used in a bus for connection, communication and power supply between computers and electronic devices....
device use, and features within operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
s that allow IT administrators or users to disable the USB port altogether. Unix
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
-based or Unix-like
Unix-like
A Unix-like operating system is one that behaves in a manner similar to a Unix system, while not necessarily conforming to or being certified to any version of the Single UNIX Specification....
systems can easily prevent users from mount
Mount (computing)
Mounting takes place before a computer can use any kind of storage device . The user or their operating system must make it accessible through the computer's file system. A user can access only files on mounted media.- Mount point :A mount point is a physical location in the partition used as a...
ing storage devices, and Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
has released instructions for preventing users from installing USB mass storage device
USB mass storage device class
The USB mass storage device class, otherwise known as USB MSC or UMS, is a protocol that allows a Universal Serial Bus device to become accessible to a host computing device, to enable file transfers between the two...
s on its operating systems.
Additional measures include physical obstruction of the USB ports, with measures ranging from the simple filling of ports with epoxy resin to commercial solutions which deposit a lockable plug into the port.
External links
The following external links act as an indirect mechanism of further learning on this topic (e.g., detailed descriptions, examples, and implementations).- How To: Simple Podslurping Script
- Podslurping and Bluesnarfing – The latest IT threats
- Summary of Podslurping
- Podslurping and related risks
- Pod Slurping - an easy technique for stealing data (PDF file)
- Pod Slurping or Podslurping
- Early description of pod slurping activity
- Pod Slurping example and presentation