Signal Boost: Firesheep

[mrlich]

While I've been warning people about this kind of security hole for a long time, I probably haven't explained it nearly as nicely as this post. Also? The fact that Firesheep now exists, making things even easier for people to collect your info... well... pay attention folks. You really don't want to be the person talking to me later saying "Well, I just didn't think it was that easy... I figured I was fine!"

Trust me when I say that the effort involved up front is nothing compared to the pain of 'after the fact'.

* * * * *

From alasdair, a very helpful description of the new Firesheep wireless security issue and the limited methods of protecting yourself against it. Pass it on:

( Firesheep and you )

Comments

[grumpymonkey.livejournal.com]

Thanks for posting this up. I've reported it on my LJ also. I wouldn't have heard of this otherwise. I still think the public and media panics too often and strongly about these things, but it still needs to be repeated again and again before the majority of folks catch on. It becomes a panic because folks don't listen until a lot of folks are pissed off and yelling about it because they didn't lock up their connections and they get punk'd.

This one... well, it could be an inconvenience, perhaps even a bad one, to have your Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites hacked. Most serious hackers, the ones looking for identity theft opportunities, wouldn't use this method but that doesn't mean it couldn't happen. What's scarier to me is how teenage mutant scumbags might just sit at Starbucks and fuck over people's lives using this bit of technology just for a lark. THAT I can see happening frequently and to a large number of people.

[mrlich.livejournal.com]

I pretty much agree on all counts.

"Look people - don't freak out - this is really simple: don't be a moron. Lock yer sheeeyit."