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Wishlist: Cracking temperature sensors
http://www.ferrousmoon.com:80/forums/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=1509		 Page 1 of 1
Author:  PJF [Tue Oct 14, 2008 8:48 pm ]
Post subject:  Wishlist: Cracking temperature sensors
G'day everyone,

There's been a few discussions on the SAGE-AU lists about network accessible temperature sensors, and that gave me an idea for a possible Onlink mission, namely to crack a temperature sensor and adjust its reading.

The obvious reasons for cracking a temperature sensor is to either:
  • Have the air-conditioning think it's cooler than it really is, and therefore not cool the room effectively.
  • Not alert the sysadmin to the fact that you've also cracked their aircon, and the machine room is baking.
Hot machine rooms usually means an increased risk of hardware failure. Depending upon the game mechanics you want to use, target machines may instead downclock their CPU rather than going into thermal shutdown, and these downclocked machines will take longer to trace you.

Cracking an aircon unit or temperature sensor may also provide a diversion when cracking LANs or other systems where a sysadmin can catch you. If they think the machine room is having temperature problems that may give you the few extra moments you need to complete your mission.

Cracking temperature sensors need not be constrained to machine rooms. Cracking the sensor in a supply room may allow for the spoilage of temperature sensitive goods and equipment (chemicals, foodstuffs, superconducting elements in the Large Hadron Collider), or just make your typical office a bad place to work.

Cheerio,

Paul
Author:  Rickton [Tue Oct 14, 2008 9:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Wishlist: Cracking temperature sensors
Quote:
superconducting elements in the Large Hadron Collider)
That's the ultimate mission for the "Followers of the Apocalypse" storyline. "Destroy Earth by creating black hole." And you thought the end of ARC was bad...


Quote:
or just make your typical office a bad place to work.
Heh, I can see it now...
Quote:
ScummCo. today announced massive profit losses due to the loss of productivity as its strike drags on. When asked what the workers are striking for, they merely shout 'What do we want? Central heating! When do we want it? NOW!'
Author:  SuperBunny [Thu Oct 16, 2008 9:17 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Wishlist: Cracking temperature sensors
An interesting idea at least, though doubt it'd properly take out a system. I was recently in a job that involved routing technicians to repair problems like that. usually overheating of server room air conditioning is noticed fairly quickly, even late in the evening companies usually hire at least one person to keep an eye out for stuff like that.

It could maybe be used to shut down a system though. It wouldn't destroy one, but could take it offline for a day as they shutdown the computers to get the AC repaired.

Though I'd only see that useful with trying to close down gateway systems long enough to bypass them.


Another option could be a hardware assault that forcibly overclocks a cpu of a computer until it literally explodes (I've actually had this happen)

Though something like that I imagine would require to run it from a system's console, and if you can get that far you can take a system out anyway. Though may be usable like the revelation virus without infecting other systems or bad side effects for storyline or your rating.
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