Demolition derby in 3 .. 2 .. 1 ..

It seems that there's a remote wipe vulnerability for Samsung Galaxy Android phones:

An enterprising hacker has demonstrated how a simple web page can reset various Samsung phones back to the state they left the factory - enabling a click, bump or text to take out a victim's mobe entirely.

The devastating flaw lies in Samsung's dialling software, triggered by the tel protocol in a URL. It isn't applicable to all the company's Android handsets, but those that are vulnerable can have their PIN changed or be wiped completely just by visiting a web page or snapping a bad QR code, or even bonking up against the wrong wireless NFC tag.

The tel protocol is generally used with phone numbers to provide clickable "call me" links on websites: tapping on the hyperlink in the handset's web browser opens up the dialling software and calls the number contained in the link.

...

That's benign, but try entering *2767*3855# on a Samsung Galaxy S3 and you'll be rewarded with an impossible-to-cancel factory reset before you can say shudda-bought-an-iPhone.

Apple fanboys are hereby granted permission to be smug.

So what does this have to do with demolition derby?  Simples.  Derek emails to tell us of an amazing first:

In the future, your automobile will be locked in the same cycle of never-ending software upgrades that holds sway over computers and smartphones. For Tesla Model S owners, the future is now.

Over 100 Model S drivers will receive the auto industry’s first ever over-the-air operating system update for their new sedans within the next two weeks, Tesla says. In addition to a handful of minor code changes, the mandatory upgrade to 1.9.11 will tweak the range calculator to lower the car’s estimated driving range by 35 miles.

“Some changes may contribute to the safety parameters of the car or make material improvements to the technology,” adds Tesla spokeswoman Shanna Hendriks. ”Some changes will provide the driver the option to control/turn off any added new features — such as idle creep.”

And some changes will be sumd00d pwning your car.  Because of course the Tesla engineers haven't left security as an afterthought - they haven't thought of security at all.  Or perhaps they're the first engineers in history to ignore the get to market NOW pressures and craft a rock solid security architecture.

And so it's all fun and games until a worm takes your steering and breaking away ...



Me, I think my next car will be something like this:

Hack that.