Here’s an odd one for you. Tobias Engel of the Chaos Communication Congress has discovered a rather nasty exploit that’ll cause any Nokia S60 devices running versions 2.6, 2.8, 3.0 or 3.1 to stop receiving SMS and MMS messages. The “Curse of Silence,” which has been independently verified by F-Secure, is triggered by sending an SMS that begins with an email address that’s at least 32 characters long. The attacker must also change the protocol identifier to internet electronic mail before sending. Devices with versions 2.8 and 3.1 lock up after 11 such messages and still have some limited receiving capabilities, while 2.6 and 3.0 devices will go completely mum after just one attack. In both cases a factory reset is required to fix it, and he says there is no other known workaround for the user. We don’t imagine this being a pervasive issue, but if you’ve got any tech-savvy enemies or malevolent pranksters in your life, you’ve been warned. Video demonstration is after the break, or hit up the read link to see if your device is among those listed at risk.

[Via Hack a Day]

Read - Vulnerability Advisory
Read - F-Secure Verification

Continue reading ‘Curse of Silence’ exploit squelches inbound SMS/MMS to Nokia S60 devices

Filed under: Cellphones

‘Curse of Silence’ exploit squelches inbound SMS/MMS to Nokia S60 devices originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Dec 2008 09:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Cellphones, Displays

It’s been nearly a year since Parrot announced its DF7700 GPRS-endowed picture frame, said to possess the mystical ability to pull photographs straight out of the ether. Now T-Mobile has pledged to bring Parrot’s magic frame to the US as the CAMEO, a $100 device that, when coupled with a $10/month service fee, can be the recipient of picture-bearing messages. When you get bored with that feature (or that fee), there’s a mini-USB port plus slots for SD/MMC cards that will enable it to accept pics in a more traditional manner. Its 7-inch screen has a 720 x 480 resolution and is surrounded by an interchangeable leather border guaranteed to look cheap in any decor — not just those with golden mirrors astride marble mantelpieces.

[Thanks, Mark]

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Filed under: Cellphones, Displays

Man, if you thought drunk dialing and texting was embarrassing, just wait until Parrot releases the world’s first MMS photo frame. Due before the holidays are through, the 7-inch, DF7700 display features a SIM card with dedicated call number built directly into the frame. It also touts USB and SD slots for quick image transfer as well as position and light sensors to keep photos upright and looking their best regardless of your own tragic state of disrepair. Sorry, no price or product images (that’s their DF7220 up there), but we think we’ve captured the typical holiday break-up scenario for you above, eh?

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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Filed under: Cellphones, Misc. Gadgets

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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!