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by NegativeLatency 3 hours ago
Even engineers like doing it sometimes. The old telephone system was so hackable because of in band signaling.
3 comments

Genuinely curious, does the telephone system have enough scope to make it dangerous?

Elevators are extremely hackable all over the world. It’s generally not considered a problem because it requires physical access, specific knowledge, and defeating cameras to exploit successfully.

What can you do with the telephone system?

Some physical constraints do not allow for the best security, and those physical constraints will always win out in the real world. When presented with the pick two of three options of fast, cheap, secure/done right, fast and cheap will always win out.
And sometimes security can’t be a high priority.

When it comes to building things: fire, building codes, inspectors, public, utilities, lenders, and insurance all go before security.

All those dictate whether or not you can build in the first place.

Real world constraints are everywhere. :)

The “new” phone system (SS7) still relies on implicit trust and a lack of security.