Who is in Charge of Outside-the-Box Thinking?

Everyone can track your license plate – not just the cops. A Belgian security researcher noticed that most parking apps do not validate that you actually own the license plate you add to your app. That means a stalker can add his victim’s license plate to his app and immediately be notified whenever that person parks anywhere…

This is another example of the inside-the-box thinking that developers are prone to. The developers of the Kryptonite bike lock had made it out of extra reinforced steel. Too bad a weakness in the lock allowed a hacker to open it with half of a ballpoint pen.

Finding holes in a system is not just securing the login and checking the encryption. It involves examining the system and its environment and users. That is a skill most developers lack. You need a “red team” who can find the holes before you roll out something embarrassingly insecure.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.