How secure is a bluetooth keyboard against password sniffing?

Posted by jhs on Server Fault See other posts from Server Fault or by jhs
Published on 2010-04-29T16:39:37Z Indexed on 2010/04/29 16:47 UTC
Read the original article Hit count: 541

Filed under:

bluetooth

|

keyboard

|

password

|

security

In a situation where an admin will enter sensitive information into a keyboard (the root password), what is the risk that a bluetooth keyboard (ship by default with Mac systems these days) would put those passwords at risk?

Another way of asking would be: what security and encryption protocols are used, if any, to establish a bluetooth connection between a keyboard and host system?

© Server Fault or respective owner

Related posts about bluetooth

RT3290 Bluetooth not pairing in Ubuntu 14.04

as seen on Ask Ubuntu - Search for 'Ask Ubuntu'
I recently followed the instructions listed in the following link to get my RT3290 bluetooth working on my laptop. These instructions have yielded the most progress I have had in the year I have had this laptop. My machine now sees my bluetooth, I can scan for and see devices, and other devices and… >>> More
Bluetooth light not turned on and bluetooth also not working on vostro 1014

as seen on Ask Ubuntu - Search for 'Ask Ubuntu'
after running following command dmesg | grep -i bluetooth [ 17.106250] Bluetooth: Core ver 2.16 [ 17.107845] Bluetooth: HCI device and connection manager initialized [ 17.107847] Bluetooth: HCI socket layer initialized [ 17.107849] Bluetooth: L2CAP socket layer initialized [ 17.107857]… >>> More
bluetooth not working on Ubuntu 13.10

as seen on Ask Ubuntu - Search for 'Ask Ubuntu'
I upgrated ubuntu from 13.4 to 13.10 and my bluetooth stopped working. When I open bluetooth I'm able to put it ON but the visibility doesn't show anything and didn't detect any device. when I: dmesg | grep Blue [ 2.046249] usb 3-1: Product: Bluetooth V2.0 Dongle [ 2.046252] usb 3-1: Manufacturer:… >>> More
Bluetooth not working on an Alienware m14x r2

as seen on Ask Ubuntu - Search for 'Ask Ubuntu'
on my alienware m14x r2 laptop with ubuntu 12.04.1 x64, the bluetooth interface is not working. WLAN works fine. I have a dualboot install with ubuntu & win 7 on this laptop. In win 7, the bluetooth interface works fine, because its all activated in BIOS. I have the killer wireless-n 1202 a/g/n… >>> More
With Bluetooth keyboard, Bluetooth mouse movement is jerky on Macbook Pro

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
I have a Macbook Pro 2,2 from early 2007. I've been using a Targus Bluetooth Laser Mouse for Mac for over a year now and its been wonderful (except for the optical scroll). Tracking has been as smooth as butter. Then someone game me an old Apple Wireless (Bluetooth) Keyboard. When both are connected… >>> More

Related posts about keyboard

HTG Reviews the CODE Keyboard: Old School Construction Meets Modern Amenities

as seen on How to geek - Search for 'How to geek'
There’s nothing quite as satisfying as the smooth and crisp action of a well built keyboard. If you’re tired of mushy keys and cheap feeling keyboards, a well-constructed mechanical keyboard is a welcome respite from the $10 keyboard that came with your computer. Read on as we put the… >>> More
how to set keyboard for phonetic Hindi typing oneiric for Wx keyboard on QWERTY keyboard

as seen on Ask Ubuntu - Search for 'Ask Ubuntu'
I am trying to type documents in Hindi language. My OS: Ubuntu 11.10 Gnome environment (http://packages.ubuntu.com/search?keywords=gnome-session-fallback) I do not use unity interface.The method is shown here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LL7icGNhIfI I am able to type in Hindi in Libreoffice and… >>> More
Send regular keyboard samples OR keyboard state changes over network

as seen on Game Development - Search for 'Game Development'
Building a multi player asteroids game where ships compete with each other. Using UDP. Wanted to minimize traffic sent to server. Which would you do: Send periodic keyboard state samples every from client every to match server physics update rate e.g. 50 times per second. Highly resilient to packet… >>> More
Non Blocking Keyboard on WinCE accessing the virtual keyboard

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
Hello Guys, I am desperately looking for a solution that enables me to read keyboard events in a non blocking way. These Keyboard events are generated by a VIRTUAL KEYBOARD that comes with the WinCE device. I have a console application running in C++, where the user is asked to navigate via 'ESC'… >>> More
Fix keyboard orientation in landscape iPad app (upside down keyboard)

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
I'm converting a landscape (UIInterfaceOrientationLandscapeRight) iPhone app to be a universal app. So far I've got the orientation working properly: the iPad version will launch with the right splash graphic and start in the right orientation (LandscapeLeft or LandscapeRight) depending on how the… >>> More