Teachers Beware! Student uses keylogger device to steal test information
Dexter
Vancouver, BC Canada
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=320&e=1&u=/ibsys/20050201/lo_kprc/2564763
I guess some people never look at the back of their computers... :shakehead
For anyone not familiar with hardware keyloggers, they can be pretty small devices, looking almost like a keyboard plug converter. See image below or click on this manufacturer's link.
http://www.keyghost.com/sx/products.htm
Dexter...
A high school student is facing criminal charges for allegedly hooking a device up to a teacher's computer to steal test information to sell to other students, Local 2 reported Tuesday.
The student attended Clements High School, 4200 Elkins Dr., in the Fort Bend Independent School District.
Officials said the 16-year-old boy hooked up a keystroke decoder to a teacher's computer and downloaded exams in November.
"Sometime in mid-December, we got a tip that this student was selling test exams that had apparently come from a teacher's computer, so that's when the investigation began," said Mary Ann Simpson, with the Fort Bend School District.
The student confessed when he was confronted, officials said.
The keystroke decoder is widely available at computer stores and on the Internet. It records every keystroke in data that can be downloaded later. It attaches between the computer and the keyboard.
"It's surprisingly simple -- to the point our police department is now on alert to other district area police departments to make them aware," Simpson said.
Police in the Spring Branch Independent School District and the Katy Independent School District sent out alerts Tuesday about the device.
"We felt that it was very important that we get this message out to our teachers because what happens down (in Fort Bend) is happening here," said Chief Chuck Brawner, with the Spring Branch ISD.
The alleged hacker was sent to an alternative school. The Fort Bend District Attorney is investigating the case.
The boy has been charged with a Class B misdemeanor -- breach of computer information. The penalty is a fine of $2,000 or 180 days in jail.
I guess some people never look at the back of their computers... :shakehead
For anyone not familiar with hardware keyloggers, they can be pretty small devices, looking almost like a keyboard plug converter. See image below or click on this manufacturer's link.
http://www.keyghost.com/sx/products.htm
Dexter...
0
Comments
Dexter...
:shakehead indeed!
Yes, it's a PS2 plug with a male and a female end, and a piece of chip of flash ROM inside it. Can you see the image I posted?
Dexter...
i can now, they weren't showing up in work
I was thinking about that back when this thread started. On the manufacturer's site I linked above, they state:
It seems to imply there that even an adaptor will not work. And if you look, there are adaptors to change a USB *mouse* to a PS2 plug, but not a *keyboard.* I think that USB keyboards are inherently different enough from PS2 keyboards that you may not be able to change a USB one to a PS2 one.
If I'm wrong, someone please provide a link to the adaptor product, and I will query the manufacturer about it.
Dexter...
I give more tests in my first syllabus (60 clock hours) than most teachers do thoughout an entire year.
Both CAD syllabi (120 clk hrs ea) are about 35 tests each.
I student = 5 minutes mischief
I teacher = 5 months catchup
I think that even $2000 and 180 days in jail is not enough. Heck pirating AutoCAD is $2500 + 5 years in jail for each license.
Ok ...I gues i would just jumble the questions around.
-drasnor