Root Causes: A PKI and Security Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Root Causes 47: Quantum Apocalypse - Quantum Resistant Cryptography for IoT Oct 25, 2019

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Expert consensus states that we will need to update cryptography before quantum computers break our existing algorithms in the next ten or fifteen years. But what do we do about IoT devices, which may lack updating mechanisms and live in the field for decades with little available access. Our hosts are joined by repeat guest Alan Grau as we explore how IoT has specific requirements and challenges for quantum resistant crypto.

Root Causes 46: Criminals Are Patching Browsers for TLS Fingerprinting Attacks Oct 22, 2019

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In a new variant on a known attack, a Russian Advanced Persistent Threat has begun applying patches to Chrome and Firefox to enable TLS fingerprinting even after the malware is removed from a system. To learn more about this new development, join our hosts as they explain how this attack works, its significance, and where the criminals may go from here.

Root Causes 45: What Is the CA/Browser Forum? Oct 18, 2019

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SSL certificate practices are governed by the rules of the CA/Browser Forum. But what is the CA/Browser Forum, who is in it, and where do they get their authority? If you've ever wondered about questions like these join our hosts as they describe the origins of the CA/Browser Forum and how it operates.

Root Causes 44: Automotive Device Security Oct 15, 2019

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The automobile is undoubtedly among today's most complex, commonplace, and security-sensitive IoT devices. Our hosts describe the cyber threats facing connected cars, including real attacks that already have been proven, new challenges that will come with increasingly advanced capabilities, and what manufacturers can do to protect drivers from harm.

Root Causes 43: Quantum Apocalypse - More on Mosca's Inequality Oct 11, 2019

Show notes

In episode 35 our hosts explained Mosca's Inequality, a formula for calculating when we need to have post-quantum encryption in place to prevent the Quantum Apocalypse. In this episode our hosts embark on a nuanced exploration of the factors influencing this calculation and test whether popular estimates are credible.

Root Causes 42: Anatomy of a Botnet Oct 08, 2019

Show notes

We talk about botnets a lot, but not everyone understands how they are built and used by the criminals who control them or how headless IoT devices have greatly added to their power. Expert guest Alan Grau (VP of IoT and Embedded Security, Sectigo) joins us to help dissect today's botnets.

Root Causes 41: What Is Blockchain's Killer App? Oct 03, 2019

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Our hosts frequently run into the assumption that blockchain and PKI are extremely similar technologies and are possibly even competitive to each other. While the two approaches accomplish some related goals, they are very different in how they work and ultimately accomplish different ends. Join us as we explain what blockchain actually does and how it compares to PKI, including some examples of use cases that are appropriate for each of these technologies.

Root Causes 40: The Reports of RSA's Death Are Greatly Exaggerated Oct 01, 2019

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Recently at Black Hat and on public YouTube videos security newcomer Crown Sterling has claimed to factor the RSA algorithm. It turns out the breathlessly discussed feats were already accomplished as early as 1999. Join our hosts as they debunk this fundamentally misleading rumor and discuss the reality of RSA encryption today.

Root Causes 39: New University Research on Phishing and Certificates Sep 26, 2019

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The majority of all phishing sites now use SSL certificates to more closely imitate the behavior of legitimate sites. New research from RWTH Aachen, a large, German technical university, investigates the patterns behind this certificate usage. Join our hosts as we dig into the details of these findings to learn specifically which certificate types are more or less likely to appear on phishing sites - and some thoughts on why.

Root Causes 38: Interesting Breaches in August Sep 24, 2019

Show notes

The month of August saw some unusual criminal activity when it comes to PKI and malware. Our hosts explain four August news stories including a SHA-1 enabled breach, stolen certificates and keys, and some interesting developments with malware-driven botnets.

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