If you happen to hear a disembodied computer voice tell you
to "drive
carefully" next time you're behind the wheel, you've probably met the
Car Whisperer.
Released late last week at the What the Hack computer security
conference in Liempde, Netherlands, Car Whisperer is software that
tricks the hands-free Bluetooth systems installed in some cars into
connecting with a Linux computer.
Car Whisperer was developed by a group of European wireless security
experts, called the Trifinite Group, as a way of illustrating the
shortcomings of some Bluetooth systems, said Martin Herfurt, an
independent security consultant based in Salzburg, Austria, and a
founder of Trifinite.
Simple Security?
The software takes advantage of the fact that many of these hands-free
systems require only a very simple four-digit security key--often a
number such as 1234 or 0000--in order to grant a device access to the
system. Many car manufacturers use the same code for all their
Bluetooth systems, making it easy for Car Whisperer to send and
receive audio from the car.
Using a special directional antenna that allowed him to extend the
normally short range of his Bluetooth connections to about a mile,
Herfurt was able to listen and send audio to about 10 cars over a
one-hour period recently.
"I could hear voices from cars passing by," he said. "If I had been
following the car, I would have been able to eavesdrop for a longer
time."
