Detroit man steals 800 gallons using Bluetooth to hack gas pumps at station::undefined

  • abhibeckert@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    15
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    edit-2
    10 months ago

    All the pumps I’ve seen have a physical key protecting them too. They’re supposed to unlock it in the morning and lock it when staff leave for the night. I’d guess these stations didn’t do that?

    • Cethin@lemmy.zip
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      24
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      10 months ago

      From everything I know about locks in important places, all pumps probably use the same key. You can probably buy that key online. I know this is true for elevators and those boxes for entering buildings, and Crown Vic police cars (and the taxis they’ve become after being sold), and many other things.

    • Erasmus@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      5
      ·
      10 months ago

      I don’t know about that part. Just that it was all over the news when it happened here and I later read about the details as to how they did it.

      I would have assumed the makers of the pumps would had put into them a little tighter security but then again look at some of these password and other web hacks we routinely see.

      • WHYAREWEALLCAPS@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        2
        ·
        10 months ago

        There’s a convergence of issues. First, and probably foremost, users are idiots. So it has to be able to be operated by a 5 year with a learning disability. Second, implementing security costs money up front. It is cheaper to let the customer deal with the fall out, then do damage control on the cheap, and keep going. Third, users can’t be assed to access things that a 5 year old with learning and physical disabilities and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in one hand can’t access. These are all typical issues stuff is engineered towards. This is why you see this same basic issue crop up over and over again.

      • ipkpjersi@lemmy.ml
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        edit-2
        10 months ago

        You’d be surprised how many times “good enough” is considered “good enough” when it comes to IT and security, even when it’s really the bare minimum.