Installation Cupcarbon : Smart City and Internet of Things Wireless Sensor Network simulator

1.    CupCarbon is a Smart City and Internet of Things Wireless Sensor Network (SCI-WSN) simulator. Its objective is to design, visualize,debug and validate distributed algorithms for monitoring,environmental data collection, etc., and to create environmental scenarios such as fires, gas, mobiles, and generally within
educational and scientific projects. Not only it can help to visually explain the basic concepts of sensor networks and how they work; it also supports scientists to test their wireless topologies, protocols, etc.

2.   Although otherwise an easy installation,but with the Java changes effecting 16 Apr 2019 wherein the release of Oracle Java 8 update 211 / 212 – also known as Oracle’s first ‘not free for production use’ patchset,the installation instructions are little changed.

3.   This post will bring you simple set of commands executed with screenshots to run this awesome simulator CUPCARBON.The simulator is available for download at http://cupcarbon.com/download.html .

4.  Once downloaded the following commands will get you the desktop with cupcarbon running. My friend Ayaz helped me out in these.

$ sudo apt-get update

 $ sudo apt-get upgrade

 next we need to check if java is installed by checking the version by the following command :

$ java -version

If there is no java installed we need to install by typing the following :

$ sudo apt install openjdk-11-jre-headless

 Once installed check the output and we should get the following :

 Now we need to install javafx with the following command :

$ sudo apt install openjfx

 Once installed,we can query with the following command and get the expected output as seen below :
$ dpkg-query -L openjfx

/usr
/usr/share
/usr/share/doc
/usr/share/doc/openjfx
/usr/share/doc/openjfx/TODO.Debian
/usr/share/doc/openjfx/changelog.Debian.gz
/usr/share/doc/openjfx/copyright
/usr/share/openjfx
/usr/share/openjfx/lib
/usr/share/openjfx/lib/javafx.properties
/usr/share/openjfx/lib/javafx.base.jar
/usr/share/openjfx/lib/javafx.controls.jar
/usr/share/openjfx/lib/javafx.fxml.jar
/usr/share/openjfx/lib/javafx.graphics.jar
/usr/share/openjfx/lib/javafx.media.jar
/usr/share/openjfx/lib/javafx.swing.jar
/usr/share/openjfx/lib/javafx.web.jar

Now move to the location where you have downloaded the cupcarbon.jar file.Unzip the same and change the execution properties as

$ chmod +x cupcarbon.jar

Once done,we need to execute and run the carbon.jar file by defining the route and javafx

$ java --module-path /usr/share/openjfx/lib --add-modules=javafx.controls,javafx.fxml,javafx.base,javafx.media,javafx.web,javafx.swing -jar '/home/smartbuilding/Downloads/cupcarbon/CupCarbon/cupcarbon.jar'

Here in the above command you need to define and enter the path which is being used in ur PC.In my case the path is home/smartbuilding/Downloads/cupcarbon/CupCarbon/cupcarbon.jar

The above should run successfully and give you the below screen that runs the cupcarbon simulator

Thanks Ayaz bhai....for the inputs.He is available at https://ayaztechy.blogspot.com/

New Laptops without Windows 8 @ Rare

1.   Strange it may seem but the current availability of Laptops for sale in the market show a peculiar sad state of specs...ie they are available only with Windows 8.There are rare options on few sites that offer New laptops for sale without Windows OS.I have been planning to buy a laptop with i3/i5 processor and in my search over various sites I came across this sad but surprising stat.

2.  Infact leading online shopping retails in Dubai have got NIL option to buy a laptop without Windows 8.I checked up at the following sites :

- www.sharafdg.com/‎

- http://www.carrefouruae.com/

- http://www.ic4uae.com/

3.   Even the options without Windows 8 on leading retails in India have much lesser options then with Windows 8. Checked up at Flipkart, snapdeal,timesofindia shopping to mention a few.

 

 4.   Given these facts...it looks like Microsoft has put in rigorous and vigorous marketing efforts to increase there sales graph for Windows 8.For those guys who wish to buy Windows 8 laptop and then attempt removing the windows and install some Linux flavour...it is equally surprising that unlike till Windows 7 wherein it was relatively a matter of deleting Windows and installing Linux...it is complex removing Windows 8 so the user has to be content with a dual boot option wherein he has to compromise with wastage of space dedicated to Windows....

5.  Thus there is a kind of binding that comes along with these laptops with Windows 8 that you cannot mov to another OS.....:-(

Keystroke Dynamics Software : We all type UNIQUELY

1.     As on date Passwords are the most common form of identification but at the same time they are also the weakest. Though they are gradually being offered with replacements from the field of bio metrics,picture passwords and OTPs etc...still it will take its time before passwords are a forgotten past..now comes another cool option to identify uniquely....the concept is likely to surprise you if you have not heard of it before!!!!this is known as Keystroke Dynamics.The key points about this are bought out below in brief :

- Know as  Deepnet Security’s TypeSense keystroke dynamics software.

- TypeSense is an authentication solution based on the science of typeprint recognition that uses keystroke dynamics to accurately identify a user by the way they type characters across a keyboard. 

- Keystroke Dynamics technology extracts the distinctive characteristics found in typed sequences of characters, and creates a statistically unique signature from the typing patterns of a person. 

- These distinctive features include the duration for which keys are held and the elapsed time between successive keystrokes. This type of software runs in the background and constantly monitors your key stokes, learns your style, and can detect if your computer’s been hijacked.

- It’s relatively user-friendly and low-cost. 

- It’s mobile and can be used to access your online accounts from anywhere and can be easily integrated in your existing authentication infrastructure.

2.    But as on date the limitation is that typing style can vary greatly depending on whether you are tired, distracted, angry, medicated, or any number of other circumstances. These variations can cause the software to make false positive or negative errors.

3.    At DEFCON : 17, Andrea Barisani and Daniele Bianco demonstrated how to sniff keystrokes using unconventional side channel attacks. Wires in PS/2 keyboards leak information from the data wire into the ground wire which acts like an antenna. The leaked information about the keyboard strokes can be detected on the power outlet, as well as other wires on the same electrical system. By slicing open one of these lines, cutting the ground wire and attaching a probe, the line can be monitored and the signal isolated by filtering out the noise using software such as Scilab. The waves from the oscilloscope and the data can be streamed to the hacker’s computer where additional software is used to extract the victim’s keystroke information.Well..well ..well......there is no end!!!!

4.     Thanks https://www.mafiasecurity.com/access-control/keystroke-dynamics/ and http://www.deepnetsecurity.com/tokens/bio/typesense/

SMART TVs : OUTSMARTED & HACKED

1.   In the land of Hacking,no one can be spared.We all keep hearing about how websites have been hacked,how smartphones are getting out smarted by various exploits in recent times.Now comes something new ,that makes smart TV owners prone .Yess!!all the proud owners of Smart TVs(SAMSUNG LEDs specifically)...can start checking if they are the lucky ones to get bitten here..this one is all about SMART TVs getting HACKED...So now on all the data that is available in their respective HDDs connected vide the USB is vulnerable to be accessed by undesired third party.So now it is not just that you watch the TV....its time for the TV to watch you.Few valuable briefs given out here :

- The Vulnerability exposed in all Samsung's Smart LED TV Software.

- This Vulnerability allows remote attackers to swipe data.

- ReVuln,a Malta-based security firm claims to have discovered this vulnerability.

- Remains a zero-day vulnerability as on date.

- A demo video by ReVuln shows how a "vulnerability for such devices can be used to retrieve sensitive information, monitor and root the device.Click on the video below to have a glimpse of how the vulnerability is exploitable.

2.   I am sure whatever efforts are made by the typical user as on date,he remains vulnerable round the clock in all the fields.How can a normal user who is not so tech savvy be aware of securing his PC,his Laptop,his smartphone,his TV,his external HDD with his personal data without encryption,his pendrives and the list is actually endless.He simply remains one of the choices by any hacker..if he is chosen he is gone...or he can remain lucky ..but how long can anyone remain lucky? The hackers community is growing at a pace which is pretty fast owing to the lure of what else but DOLLARs and more DOLLARs.With "Crimeware as a Service" readily available as a service at the click, NO ONE IS SECURE.It will actually take years to stabilize the current security environment from perspective of a typical user as he understands that giving an equal importance to his IT assets security is more important then locking his house as he leaves for work.

The power of ALGORITHMS : Writing Articles/Reports/News!!!

1.  We all are pretty aware that whatever works on the net ,cyberspace web,applications is all backed by many codes and algos running in the background..,,it is these algorithms and codes that actually decide how things happen at the front end ie the user interface.Designed by coders and programmers these algorithms perform herculean tasks in all our routine IT activities...now for all those of us who work in offices and corporate ....we generally keep coming across compiling and analysing reports on various aspects ,be it the views...the summary...the monthly/quarterly feedback... the main article for some journal....or some regular feed etc.So now making these reports and feedbacks etc actually requires manual intervention...and the quality of these reports are proportional to the amount of quality work man hours that have gone into making it....but what if these manual intervention is replaced by intelligent algorithms...ie the reports being compiled are made out of algorithms???

2.   This is what has happened at Narrative Science,a company that trains computers to write news stories...yes you heard it write!!! "Trains computers to write News Stories".The first story that I read about this is available here.The brief points from this story goes like these :

     -  Every 30 seconds or so, the algorithmic bull pen of Narrative Science, a 30-person company occupying a large room on the fringes of the Chicago Loop, extrudes a story whose very byline is a question of philosophical inquiry.

  - Kristian Hammond is the CTO and co-founder of Narrative Science.According to Hammond, these stories are only the first step toward what will eventually become a news universe dominated by computer-generated stories....(amazing amazing future!!!!:-)

   - If one wishes to know the percentage of news that would be written by computers in 15 years.......according to Hammond is going to be more then 90%

3.   So guys the above example is for the news world...where else we can think? Can it compile Intelligence reports for the FBI and our CID based on inputs from so many sources....Off course this is being handled manually as on date....but imagining a intel report compiled by a algorithm is a serious contender for making a permanent place in such agencies.Well...this is one imagination...how about demographic repots...election reports...infact the list is endless.....

4.    Thanks http://www.wired.com

Cloud Computing & Virtualisation

 1.    Recently got an opportunity to give a presentation to a school/college audience about whats all the fuzz of Cloud Computing and Virtualization about?I tried building up the presentation from scratch to handling some secuity issues in the cloud.The copy is for you to see for reference : 

Cloud computing and Virtualisation

FinFisher : THE LAWFUL INTERCEPTOR

1.  Some thing to read here about one security software named FINFISHER thats making some news...a sequence wise time line of events related to this is produced below : 

-  FinFisher is security software. 

-  Marketed by Gamma International to various government security officials assuring that it could be covertly installed on suspect's computers through exploiting security lapses.

-  In the name of Lawful Interception (LI), FinFisher was found in the Egyptian Secret Police Spy headquarters used to track people down during the revolution when Egyptian dissidents ransacked the office's of Egypt's secret police during the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak 

-  Egyptian dissidents who ransacked the office discovered a contract with Gamma International for £287,000 for a license to run the FinFisher software.

-  A security flaw in so called "designed secure" applications like Apple's iTunes allowed unauthorized third parties to use iTunes online update procedures to install unauthorized programs.Gamma International offered presentations to government security officials at security software trade shows where they described to security officials how to covertly install the FinFisher spy software on suspect's computers using iTunes' update procedures.

FEATURES OF FINFISHER : 

-  FinFisher is able to record Skype and other voice over IP communications.

-  Logs keystrokes and turn on a computer's webcam and microphone. 

-  Can also steal files from a hard disk

-  Built to bypass dozens of antivirus systems.

-  Presently found across 12 C&C servers in 10 countries: the US, Indonesia, Australia, Qatar, Ethiopia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Mongolia, Latvia and Dubai.

-  Not confirmed by any govt agencies as being used officially but then who else would at such a large scale???

-  Expected to be particularly difficult to detect. 

-  Used to access target Systems to give full access to stored information with the ability to take control of target systems' functions to the point of capturing encrypted data and communications. 

"When used in combination with enhanced remote deployment methods, the Government Agencies will have the capability to remotely deploy software on target systems".............................extract from official finfisher site at http://www.finfisher.com/FinFisher/en/portfolio.php

2.    Thanks http://thehackernews.com and http://www.bloomberg.com

CHROME OS

Recently downloaded CHROME OS and ran it on a Virtual Box.....few screen shots....for those who wish to see how it looks!!!!Double click on the image to view it bigger and clear

Intel® Core™ i3 Processor & Server 2003

1. Strange are the ways sometimes when we get troubled by the PC.In an attempt to upgrade one of the PCs to Intel® Core™ i3 Processor,I found a problem I never thought of.

2. Now just to give u a small brief,I have a small office complex with about 15 computers on Server 2003 which was running fine till one day when i just decided to upgrade my server machine to Intel® Core™ i3 Processor.I bought the combo pack of this processor with its motherboard for about 11k,i assembled it and started with the setup of server 2003.....started nicely but this would never install completly in my 'N' number of attempts and would hang halfways.....then i thought like Murphy is acting fine with me and their is some problem with the processor motherboard hardware...so replaced the same pack with a new one..but the problem persisted....i contacted the local dealer,surprised with the problem he himself attempted the same but met with the same end.....

3. I changed my installation CDs ,still met with the same problem...finally I could arrive that there may be some compatibility issue between server 2003 & Intel® Core™ i3 Processor.........and reverted back to core 2 duo,the earlier one.

4. I would request readers to augment their comments, if any, with such a problem being faced anywhere else.

Software Leloooo....Software lelooooo

1.  I have spent my bachpan in the middle class galiyaan of Saket wherein I was frequent to hearing the sabzeewala singing and doing cantabile on his cycle with loads of subziyaan ....."AALLLU LELOOOO....Baigan lelo..........." and so on and the list went on till he recited his entire list of subzees in his bunny bag.

2.  Lately I got cued of this sequence as I visited Nehru Place,the hub of IT Hardware   selling and Software.Not less then about 30-35 persons with a bag full of CDs and DVDs with a collection of plebeian photocopy list of all the latest softwares (cracked) were found freely dispersing the song "Software Leloooooooo.....Software Leloooooo".I was surprised thus,for the second time I put my ears wide open to get the substantiation again.Yes....indeed they all were selling SOFTWAREs....all including Windows Server 2008,Autocad 2009,Windows 7 beta,Encarta 2009,Encylopedia 2009 and so on...........the list is endless.....

3. I wanted to take a pic of that but regrettably I was not carrying anything to get them clicked.Nehru Place is one real place to be known as IT HUB...the real one.....much like we have sabzee ka bazzaar there we have a IT ka bazaar.People who do not K of computer(.........does it even exist in the word)...are found selling old computers...motherboards,,,,harddisks...RAM....all.....u name it they have it.....and at a price at which BILL GATES WILL ANNOUNCE HIS RETIREMENT AGAIN.SUN,SOLARIS  and all major software developers would get deposited in their closest and respective ICU's............Rs 60/ is all it takes to get a combination of all these softwares in one DVD........yes...a DVD...DUAL LAYER with a capacity of 16 GB........Janta is found even bargaining & dickering on this and they even get it.

4. Is it right or wrong?.........of course it  is wrong !!! but who cares.........oh darling yeh hai India.........