When attending the Windy City Summit last week, I had the opportunity to sit in on many of the fraud seminars. Two of the sessions were heavily focused on cyber crimes, including unauthorized intrusion into corporate computers and networks as well as identity theft.
Specifically, there was a significant amount of discussion around hackers getting programs into computers that will log every click and keystroke the user makes. These attempted intrusions are not always caught and can compromise highly sensitive data. Interestingly, the only discussion was related to software attacks through Trojan horses and other similar methods.
One thing that all of the seminars forgot to tell everyone is to look at the connection between their keyboard and their PC. Often times this connection is in the back of the PC or under the desk. So why should you waste your time, maybe even get on the floor under your desk, to do this every day? Well, because of a little device that anyone can buy for around $40 called a “keystroke logger.” Look at these!
A keystroke logger is a small device that is inserted between a keyboard and PC. It will record every single keystroke made by the user without leaving any trace of the recording on the hard drive–and it also won’t trigger any spyware warnings. Later, you just unplug it and its small enough to fit into a pocket. If I was a perpetrator of identity theft or another cyber crime, I would now have an abundance of information about your computer use, passwords, and personal information.
None of the presenters I spoke with at the Windy City Summit had ever even heard of a keystroke logger! I know because I’ve met victims of this type of attack. Keystroke loggers are fast, cheap, and leave no trace. Do you work in an office environment where this type of attack could take place? Take five seconds and look at your keyboard connection every time you sit down at your computer–and maybe even consider getting down to look underneath that desk. Swiffer, anyone?
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