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Pros and cons of RightTrack or SnapShot devices

Dave Farquhar security June 20, 2016November 26, 2018Charlie Miller, computer security, Debit card, insurance companies, insurance company, Jeep, turkey

Insurance companies are starting to offer discounts if you plug one of their devices, often called a RightTrack or SnapShot, into your car’s ODB2 port.

One of my college buddies asked me about them when his insurance company offered his family a 5% discount to plug these into their cars, and then make them eligible for up to another 25%. Those are compelling numbers. So what are the potential drawbacks?

Dave Farquhar

David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He has written professionally about computers since 1991, so he was writing about retro computers when they were still new. He has been working in IT professionally since 1994 and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He holds Security+ and CISSP certifications. Today he blogs five times a week, mostly about retro computers and retro gaming covering the time period from 1975 to 2000.

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Pogue’s attitude is unfortunately far too common

Dave Farquhar security October 27, 2015October 26, 2015Charlie Miller, David Pogue, demonstration, prison

According to David Pogue, since hacking a car is “nearly impossible,” we shouldn’t talk about it anymore.

That, my friends, is precisely what’s wrong with security and security awareness today. Flying to the moon is nearly impossible, after all, and you could easily kill yourself trying. David Pogue has never done it. But Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin did.

Dave Farquhar

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What you can learn about corporate networks from the Jeep hack

Dave Farquhar security August 8, 2015August 1, 2015Charlie Miller, firewall, Jeep

I’ve talked before about the infamous Jeep hack, but there’s more to learn from it than just that cars are vulnerable. The way Charlie Miller and Chris Valasek hacked the Jeep has implications for any computer network.

Dave Farquhar

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Stunt Hacking: Why Charlie Miller hacked a Jeep driving on I-64

Dave Farquhar security July 23, 2015July 22, 2015Charlie Miller, Chrysler, greenberg, Jeep, KIM, podcast

St. Louis-based security researcher Charlie Miller and his collaborator Chris Valasek got themselves in the news this week by hacking a Jeep driven by Wired journalist Andy Greenberg on I-64.

The reaction was mixed, but one common theme was, why I-64, where lives could have been at risk, rather than an abandoned parking lot?

I don’t know Miller or Valasek, so it goes without saying I don’t speak for either one of them, but I think I have a pretty good idea why they did it that way.

Dave Farquhar

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