HP Printer Vulnerability : Othor Games

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 9:34 am

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/11/29/hackers-can-set-your-hp-printer-on-fire-researchers-demonstrate/#ixzz1f8TbsisK

"HP is investigating a claim that essentially any LaserJet the company made before 2009 -- about 100 million have been sold since 1984 -- could be remotely instructed to catch fire.
Researchers at Columbia University, under a series of government and industry grants, have shown that the printers can be remotely controlled by hackers over the Internet, allowing them to not only steal information but even cause physical damage, according to a report on MSNBC.com."

Of course researchers will investigate anything for a grant, but I'm unsure if there is any rare breed of hacker+pyromaniac that would use their skills to such evil intent... But who knows?

Would this be a serious concern to any of our IT folks here?

At least I have a valid reason to not hate my Canon so much. :tongue:

[edit]

Looks like there has been a retraction of the original article. Sorry about that.

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 9:06 am

Of course researchers will investigate anything for a grant, but I'm unsure if there is any rare breed of hacker+pyromaniac that would use their skills to such evil intent... But who knows?

Well if there isn't any right now, I guarantee someone is going to try it now.

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 2:54 am

Hmm fire in da paper room? just doesn't have the same ring as fire in da hole imho but whatever floats the boat. Personally i'm not surprised by this at all since everything and anything has a vulnerability. Supposedly the mythbusters wanted to test the vulnerability of those RFID tags and were instantly shot down cause of the law department or something.

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 10:20 am

Did you read the article? It doesn't even have the quote you posted in the OP.

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 4:11 am

Did you read the article? It doesn't even have the quote you posted in the OP.

Yes I read the article, and the page link is different than the one I originally read. Very strange. I'll post the original page from my history.

[edit]

Both pages prior to my OP go to the same page. Looks like a very fast retraction of the original article by Fox. :confused:

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 1:03 pm

This is Defron, and I approve abusing this vulnerability in favor of a world free of printers.

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 5:57 am

Both pages prior to my OP go to the same page. Looks like a very fast retraction of the original article by Fox. :confused:

Interesting. I would have thought they'd be used to the taste of their foot by now and wouldn't have bothered to attempt to remove it...again.

This is Defron, and I approve abusing this vulnerability in favor of a world free of printers.

Agreed. Printers are evil, hateful machines.

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 7:04 am

This is Defron, and I approve abusing this vulnerability in favor of a world free of printers.

I agree with this in every way.

"Hey could you help me with my computer?"

"Yeah, sure, whats wrong with it?"

"The printer isn't working"

"NOPE"

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 2:19 am

Agreed. Printers are evil, hateful machines.

So true. They laugh at us while deciding to "clean the printhead" for five minutes while we wait for a one page document needed ten minutes ago for a meeting.

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 5:52 am

So true. They laugh at us while deciding to "clean the printhead" for five minutes while we wait for a one page document needed ten minutes ago for a meeting.

That's why you print documents on a laser printer... assuming it doesn't set them on fire. :ahhh:

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 4:02 am

I guess Weekly World News got it right.

» Fri Dec 09, 2011 1:41 am

That's why you print documents on a laser printer... assuming it doesn't set them on fire. :ahhh:

I got a no ink error on a laser printer at uni. Not "replace toner cartridge" or some generic error code, the little screen said "Cannot print: replace ink cartridge".
Opening and closing the paper tray made it work :bonk: