Keep bluetooth off if not needed, experts suggest. Photo: EFE
It is quite common to keep bluetooth on mobile devices, even when it is not needed. The main problem is not given by the consumption of the battery, but by the privacy risks it has a permanently open signal.
Bluetooth technology offers endless benefits, especially in terms of connectivitybut it has a high degree of vulnerability which allows attackers to breach security measures or even edit sent files.
The problem of forgetting connected is comparable to having a headlight always on. This happens even without being connected to another device. The interface is responsible for periodically sending the UUID to other devices. It is the universally unique identifier, something you need so that other devices can be connected.
For cybersecurity professionals and experts, the wireless tool is an invitation to crime. It may seem like an exaggeration, but most cybercrime cases start with Bluetooth accessing devices.
So much so that at this year’s DEFCON conference, experts wanted to show attendees the ability of wireless networks to identify vulnerable digital devices.
Bluetooth Risks
Activated Bluetooth is like a beacon that constantly emits a signal.
There are other wireless-related problems that worry experts, such as the many instances where hackers have managed to do so intercept and even alter the data sent during wireless communication.
With a few tools, an attacker can listen to or change the content of nearby Bluetooth communication, even between devices that have previously been successfully paired.
A recent discovery showed that AirDrop, Apple’s ad-hoc service, can also be compromised by hackers. There have been instances where hackers have been able to determine a user’s full phone number due to the way Bluetooth Low Energy works.
As recently reported by the New York Times, there are stores that use electronic beacons to radiate Bluetooth signals, thus tracking the locations of individual shoppers, and that information is subsequently sold to advertisers.
It is common for an attacker to get in the middle of connecting two devices.
Another problem is what is known as a Man-in-the-Middle attack. It’s a classic in terms of communications threats. Basically it consists of an attacker who hinders the connection between two devices. You can read what is sent and even edit that data.
Therefore, the phone may be accidentally connected to a third party device. If it’s an attacker, they could take control, gather information, and even block access.
The Bluetooth technology works through radio frequency connections in the 2.4 GHz band, and is now at its 5.2 version after the various updates that have been developed since the commercialization began, thus optimizing its operation, its safety and also requiring a consumption of much less battery than previous versions needed.
Although newer versions of this technology have data encryption, they are still vulnerable. It is estimated that in the course of 2022 the total number of devices equipped with Bluetooth will exceed 5 billion.
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Source: Clarin
