Privacy and security seems to always be on everyone’s mind today. Intuitively we are always making sure our homes are locked before we leave and that our cars when left aren’t vulnerable to any intruders. Just like our homes and cars, we keep our technological devices secure and locked with some sort of authentication, but they too have a variety of different entrances for an intruder to sneak their way in.
The most popular digital entrance into a electronic device today is through its Wifi. We have all heard of the horror stories of connecting to a wrong network in a public place and having your personal information stolen. But few people think about how their Bluetooth can be effected. Minimizing your Bluetooth usage minimizes your exposure to the vulnerabilities. Most recently, an attack called BlueBorne allows for any affected device with Bluetooth turned on to be attacked through a series of vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities don’t stem from the Bluetooth itself but the implementation in all the of the software including Windows, Andriod, Linux and iOS. This potentially puts millions at risk.
The Blueborn attack starts by going through the process by scanning devices with Bluetooth on, it then starts probing them for information such as device type and operating system to see if they have the vulnerabilities it can latch on to. The Blueborn bug can allow hackers to take control of a device and access private information. This attack can also spread from device to device in one motion if other vulnerable Bluetooth enabled targets are nearby.
The best defense against this Bluetooth security flaw is to make sure your device system is always updated with the latest software and firmware. This make sure there are no vulnerabilities in the implementation of Bluetooth within your operating system. Bluetooth does many amazing things that seem almost magical and the benefits outweigh the calculated risk of turning it on. However when not in use it is best to make sure to keep your Bluetooth setting off and use it when you know you are in a safe and secure area.