Hot Glue

If you need to remove hot glue from object which you have stuck together, if it will not spoil the parts then an easy way is to simmer some water on the hob and drop the item in... A few minutes later the glue will again be soft and removable.

How People Hack Your WIFI

Okay so I am finally getting around to the pen test post. Please note this post is for educational purposes only and the information contained herein should not be used against routers for which you are not authorized to access, it is intended to show how somebody may attack your access point.  

What is needed at the base of this is a copy of Backtrack, a compatible wireless card, reaver and a machine you don't mind using for this operation. Theoretically the attack can be run from a live CD though I would suggest against this as a cut in power or a crash will cost you all the progress you have made. I would instead suggest installing this either on a spare machine or into a virtual machine. I personally prefer the virtual machine option as this allows you to continue using the machine whilst the attack is in progress. 

I will assume that you have now installed the operating system into a virtual machine or into a spare box (this is done by clicking install on the desktop of the Backtrack live CD). Next we need reaver this can either be downloaded ahead of time and transferred to the virtual machine or downloaded. Once the compressed file is on the machine we need to open a console window and type the following  tar xvfz filename.tar.gz. Next we navigate to the directory where this unzipped (usually in the place it was copied/downloaded). We type ./configure then make and finally make install. If there has been no problems we can now start.

As we are only hitting our own routers then the need to use macchanger is not required as we are not attempting to cover our tracks if you fancy a bit of extra reading just Google macchanger. 

Now we shall make sure that our network card is recognised. We type again in the console window airmon-ng if we see our network card then we type airmon-ng start wlan0 or airmon-ng start wlan1. Next we have to find the list of routers in range so we type airodump-ng mon0. Once you see your router hold down Ctrl and C at the same time. now we type reaver -i mon0 -b 00:00:00:00:00 -vv where 00:00:00:00:00 is the bssid of your router. Now just sit back and wait. The attack may time out after every 10 pins if the router has this feature but 5 minutes later it will continue. This can take anywhere between a few seconds and a week or two depending on the connection, lock outs, etc.

This attack basically outlines a WPS attack which compromises routers regardless of how strong the WPA key is. There are ways to speed up the attack but I am just outlining the basic premise of the attack. The best bet is to disable this in the settings of the router. There are other methods of cracking a WIFI connection but we do not wish to make it easy for them.

Again I reiterate that this is for your information on how people may crack your router and not a hacking guide.

Pen Test Prologue

Okay, so I have been asked to put a tutorial together on how to Pen Test a wireless access point using Backtrack and Reaver combination as I have successfully Pen Tested a router recently to see if the software worked. I thought to myself if people knew the vulnerability in the WPS (Wireless Protected Setup) then they could then work on getting a non WPS router or locking the router down. The basics of WPS are shown in this link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi_Protected_Setup. I will show step by step how a would be wifi thief will attack your router... This may not seem like an issue but imagine that your fair usage policy (FuP) is breached month in an month out which can cause you to be put on a high usage loop or be fingered in breach of copyright or maybe the "hacker" is using your connection to access sick porn or terrorist materials... This would again be brought back to your front door. This is why I think the requests are a good reason to publish in my next post. Please check back in a week or so and I shall hopefully have it done.

Office 2013 (OFFICE 15)

Having been invited to sample the new Microsoft Office 15 (365 Premium (Office 2013)), I thought I would give it a dabble. The basic idea is that local apps are augmented by an online experience allowing for seamless usage with access to data not reliant on one machine. The license allows the software to be initialised on up to five machines which is realistic for most home environments and small offices. My experience was not a positive one. Opening the apps with a shaky Internet connection caused them to misbehave and opening local native Microsoft documents caused an all out crash. I for one will not be upgrading past 2007 as this for me is the definitive version. If forced to move on I shall seriously consider open source equivalents. 

Football Day

The weekend is here again and it's a countdown to kick off. I of course follow Everton. It is exciting times as a blue. If we win today and Sunderland lose or draw then we jump two places above Liverpool. This ahead of the derby at Wembley will be a big boost for the lads and all the fans - especially all the nay-sayers who are currently bombarding all the Facebook groups. It is the wait before kick off which kills me most or to quote a film "pre match stress (PMS)". But it all becomes worth it when the whistle sounds and the crowd roars. 

7 Foot Star Wars Figure.

Just seen this. http://games.yahoo.com/blogs/unplugged/darth-malgnificent-seven-foot-star-wars-figure-awesome-183228462.html. It in short is a 7ft Star Wars figure which is based on the character in the Old Repubic game. I personally find this rather epic and would make an excellent conversational piece in any geek home.

Welcome Note

Welcome to my personal blog. It will contain things and thoughts that amuse me. Some may be offended by content and if you are - feel free to click away. I will also post things I find online which I think are worthy of note.