Bluetooth eavesdropping
gsweet2001 said:
...I changed my password from 1111 but since it is displayed for anyone to see, why change it? What security does it provide if anyone...
Glad you asked!
I'm computer system administrator with decades of experience, and in our line of work we always change passwords from default values because we know that sooner or later, would-be intruder
or virus will try to get in with the default password.
According to some items I have read, it is possible for people to eavesdrop on Bluetooth conversations in cars. This is done by guessing the passcode, and first good guess is the common defaults (0000, 1111, and 1234). This is accomplished using a BT equipped laptop and has a range of 300 feet (or 1 mile with a special antenna).
I regret that I did not suggest a full 8-dight passcode
and changing the Prius device name to improve security in my earlier post (I will try to edit if I can).
If you wish to read more about this, here is what I found:
http://www.bookofjoe.com/2005/08/httpwwwnytimesc.html - Blog item describing cat BT eavesdropping scenarios and software
http://trifinite.org - Has "Car Whisper" eavesdropping software and other Bluetooth security hacking/auditing/tools
Here is a description of a BT virus from F-Secure. The virus is now common in Spain according to
this blog.
If I was just slighlty more paranoid I wouldn't use Bluetooth--but I'm also a gadget junkie.
+peace