Planet Arduino

[Nikhil] has been experimenting with human interface devices (HID) in relation to security. We’ve seen in the past how HID can be exploited using inexpensive equipment. [Nikhil] has built his own simple device to drop malicious files onto target computers using HID technology.

The system runs on a Teensy 3.0. The Teensy is like a very small version of Arduino that has built-in functionality for emulating human interface devices, such as keyboards. This means that you can trick a computer into believing the Teensy is a keyboard. The computer will treat it as such, and the Teensy can enter keystrokes into the computer as though it were a human typing them. You can see how this might be a security problem.

[Nikhil’s] device uses a very simple trick to install files on a target machine. It simply opens up Powershell and runs a one-liner command. Generally, this commend will create a file based on input received from a web site controlled by the attacker. The script might download a trojan virus, or it might create a shortcut on the user’s desktop which will run a malicious script. The device can also create hot keys that will run a specific script every time the user presses that key.

Protecting from this type off attack can be difficult. Your primary option would be to strictly control USB devices, but this can be difficult to manage, especially in large organizations. Web filtering would also help in this specific case, since the attack relies on downloading files from the web. Your best bet might be to train users to not plug in any old USB device they find lying around. Regardless of the methodology, it’s important to know that this stuff is out there in the wild.

Filed under: Arduino Hacks, security hacks

Last March  RS Components, in collaboration with RobotChallenge, launched the Hack the Arduino Robot competition.

Jacob Glueck submitted a great hack for the Arduino Robot:

“A couple of years ago, I built an Arduino-powered shirt-folding machine which folds clothes. Using the Arduino robot from the RobotChallenge, I will build a device to remove folded clothes from the machine and to stack them. My idea is special because it will involve two Arduinos (the Arduino Uno in the shirt folder, and the Arduino Robot) which will have to communicate, and because it will be very useful. The robot will solve the real life problem of laundry folding by making the task easier and faster and by doing so nicely; the robot will use a custom-designed gripper to transport garments while keeping them perfectly folded.”

On his blog you can look at the pictures of the construction  phase , and below watch the video of the final project:

There are a lot of different shields out there for Arduino. However, sometimes there arises a need to make your own. Even more plentiful in the world of electronics are integrated circuits that do a lot of nifty things. Some control output, some input, and some are sensors. In this edition of Projects with Ryan Slaugh I show you how to make your own custom proto shield.

Read more on MAKE

Next week, we’ll be in London at Hack The Hackathon‘s developer competition to support the teams in experimenting with “smart” devices. After the great hackathon we had during the Arduino Camp in Torino, we’ll move to London for the 48-hour competition addressing an array of possible projects falling loosely into three broad challenge categories: Social Good, Sustainable Business, and Smarter Living.

The event (5th-7th July), hosted by the HUB Westminster in Piccadilly Circus, is:

designed for technical and non-technical innovators, designers, and engineers to build working prototypes, get fed, compete for prizes across different categories, work with expert mentors, meet new people, and scout for teammates to work on new or current projects.

If you are an innovator, designer, coder, information architect, and social media lover passionate about Learning, Exploring, Building, Sharing, and Mastering state-of-the-art technologies in a nurturing and exciting environment where everyone is a winner, then you should take this chance.

You can participate to the event with or without an idea or a project in mind. And don’t worry if you are coming by yourself, without a team already formed. The important thing is to register and arrive on time at the location hosting us for the weekend.

During the 48-hour developer competition, Hack The Hackathon will also host Africa Builds an exploratory information session and open discussion  to identify a core team of like-minded collaborators who want to inspire change among those most affected by and most able to combat the challenges facing the nations of Africa.

Federico Vanzati, one of our Arduino mentors, will be there and happy to meet you and show you all about Arduino. Looking forward to see you in London!

Check all the info and register to the free event here.

 

Hamburg Maker Meeting 2012, which took place last week and involved about 200 visitors and more than 20 exhibitors, has been a fantastic opportunity to meet and share experience regarding several topics, such as 3D printing, hacking, retro gaming and so on. At the Attraktor Makerspace, several projects have been presented and demonstrated by their inventors, among which we highlight a very nice Arduino-based floppy drive organ that has been employed to play the Tetris game theme.

Moreover, among the others events planned for the meeting, a special sneak-preview session allowed all the interested people to get some insights on the new Arduino Due board, released a couple of days ago.

A video of the event can be found here, while here you may find more pictures.

More information can be found on the homepage of the meeting.

[Via: Hamburg Maker Meeting website]