Yesterday morning, as I completed the long journey from my parking spot to my office, another more likely use of the security vulnerability in Medtronic insulin pumps occurred to me. Yes, the risks involving insulin are very real. And yes, a determined attacker could use this vulnerability to take a Medtronic owner’s life. But those [...]
All posts for the month August, 2011
A more likely use of the Medtronic exploit
Posted by Dave Farquhar on August 31, 2011
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2011/08/a-more-likely-use-of-the-medtronic-exploit/
Fix weird Internet connection problems with ipconfig
One of the most maddening things that can happen when you’re using a computer is that a web site you visit routinely quits working. Your Internet connection appears to be fine, but suddenly, for some reason, you can’t go to the site you were just using. Try to go to another site you haven’t visited [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on August 30, 2011
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2011/08/fix-weird-internet-connection-problems-with-ipconfig/
Shame on you, Medtronic
Insulin pumps marketed by Minneapolis-based Medtronic have a serious, life-threatening security flaw, and the company couldn’t care less. For these two reasons, this isn’t your typical security flaw, and Medtronic’s response–in 30 years, we’ve ever seen a problem that we know of–is beyond deplorable. Ford’s infamous decision to pay lawsuits rather than fix a deadly [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on August 30, 2011
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2011/08/shame-on-you-medtronic/
A bargain SSD for the masses
I spotted a bargain SSD: The Kingston SSDNow V+100 96 GBÂ is available at Amazon for $130. (It’s available other places for about the same price, but with Amazon’s free shipping, it’s probably cheaper there.) It uses a Toshiba controller that (by some accounts) lacks NCQ, but other than that, it’s a modern controller, and [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on August 29, 2011
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2011/08/a-bargain-ssd-for-the-masses/
A tip for selling something: Stage another interested buyer
I stumbled into something today that I’m sure I’ve read elsewhere and had forgotten about. We’re trying to rent this house out, you see. And so far, everyone I’ve showed it to has jerked me around about it. And most people don’t want to rent it. They want to buy it for nothing. It’s a [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on August 28, 2011
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2011/08/a-tip-for-selling-something-stage-another-interested-buyer/
Maybe this is how Apple does it
Sitting in the stands at a baseball game the day after Steve Jobs’ surprise resignation from Apple, of course the subject came up. “I wish I knew how Apple does it,” I said. “I have an idea,” my friend Tom Gatermann said.
Posted by Dave Farquhar on August 27, 2011
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2011/08/maybe-this-is-how-apple-does-it/
Watch out for this Apache bug
There is a nasty Apache exploit going around right now that exploits a vulnerability in versions 1.3.x, 2.0.x and 2.2.x. Basically, it allows the process to exhaust all available memory and crash by sending GET requests with overlapping byte ranges. The methodology seems to borrow a page from the teardrop attack. Yes, I’ve been studying [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on August 26, 2011
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2011/08/watch-out-for-this-apache-bug/
And now it’s Apple’s turn
It’s been a weird month for technology. And as always, Apple had a way to get people to stop talking about anything else, though it’s not the news Apple wanted do deliver this week. I can only think of one bit of news Apple would want to deliver less. Steve Jobs is stepping down as [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on August 25, 2011
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2011/08/and-now-its-apples-turn/
Lessons of the HP Touchpad
At full price ($499 for the 16 GB model and $599 for the 32 GB model) the HP Touchpad was a colossal flop. Like AT&T’s first PC clones of the mid 1980s, it was a me-too product at a me-too price that wasn’t quite as good as the product it was imitating. So, basically, there [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on August 24, 2011
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2011/08/lessons-of-the-hp-touchpad/