ATM hacking & mobile calls interception to be demonstrated live

ABU DHABI, UAE: Distinguished experts will be taking the stage at Black Hat Abu Dhabi running from the 8th - 11th of November at Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi to discuss and demonstrate some of the major security concerns faced by the IT world.

According to a press release, to increase understanding, delegates at Black Hat Abu Dhabi will not only hear about security threats but will witness them first hand as skilled security consultants and researchers, brought in from across the globe, attempt to hack ATM machines, mobile phones and computers.

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The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) represented by the UAE Computer Emergency Response Team (aeCERT), in cooperation with Khalifa University of Science and Technology with UBM, have brought Black Hat to the Middle East, recognising the importance of increasing online security. All of the speakers that have been invited to appear at Black Hat Abu Dhabi are leaders in their field, consulting for many multi-national corporations, the release said.

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Barnaby Jack, Director of Research at IOActive Labs, has previously appeared at Black Hat Las Vegas to much acclaim. Jack will be speaking at Black Hat Abu Dhabi and commented on his planned demo: "Last year, there was one ATM; this year, I'm doubling down and bringing two new model ATMs from two major vendors. I will demonstrate both local and remote attacks, and I will reveal a multi-platform ATM rootkit. Finally, I will discuss protection mechanisms that ATM manufacturers can implement to safeguard against these attacks."

The Grugq is a pioneering information security researcher with over a decade of professional experience and will be presenting a briefing titled 'Base Jumping: Attacking GSM Base Station Systems and mobile phone Base Bands', where the two main components of the attack system will be demoed - malicious basestations and malicious basebands. The base station enables fuzzing mobile phone basebands, as well as other attacks. The baseband is used to test the GSM network equipment for flaws, as well as to exploit backend systems.

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Stephen A. Ridley, Senior Researcher, Matasano Security, will discuss and demonstrate practical techniques for the evasion and escape of "Sand-boxing" technologies. Many techniques have been discussed but only vaguely at popular security conferences. Very little *actual* code and demonstrations have been performed. This presentation will consist mostly of demonstrations and review of actual code.

Another key presenter will be Zane Lackey, Senior Security Consultant with iSEC Partners, who will be holding a seminar titled "Why You Can't Trust Mobile Phone Networks for Critical Infrastructure"; during this he will intercept live phone calls on stage and explain how hackers can track user locations, potentially forge software updates or directly compromise mobile devices. Lackey will also demonstrate steps individuals and organizations can take to fortify their mobile security.

Black Hat Abu Dhabi will take place from 8th to 11th November 2010 at the Emirates Palace, and will include a wide variety of intensive technical presentations delivered by the leading thinkers of the information security world. The event will also provide hands-on, multi-day training sessions on the latest in IT security trends and techniques, while the Black Hat Briefings will offer an opportunity for industry experts to share their experience and knowledge with other professionals.