DECT or rather, Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications, has apparently been broken by researchers.
From The Register:
Cryptographers have broken the proprietary encryption used to prevent eavesdropping on more than 800 million cordless phones worldwide, demonstrating once again the risks of relying on obscure technologies to remain secure.
The attack is the first to crack the cipher at the heart of the DECT, or Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications, standard, which encrypts radio signals as they travel between cordless phones in homes and businesses and corresponding base stations.
Ah, the simple pleasures of smashing a 20 year old proprietary encryption algorithm to bits.
The researchers are presenting their findings at the FSE 2010 Conference in Korea as we speak. Should be interesting to see how the industry reacts.
For the full story, read on.
