Cell phone to control Linux box 1

[jouell]

Would folks find this valuable?

I am hacking together something that would allow a Cell phone to send an email and ultimately control a Linux box

An extremely early, and entirely unsecured version version's guts is here:

http://www.rootshell.be/~jouell/unix/webremote.html

It works with some hacking....Looking for general feedback on the idea, NOT the product (I have many hours before its even half ready to distribute)


-John

 

[Trevoke]

As long as there's someone to hack it, there'll be someone else to enjoy it. I'm not that hackish, but I love the idea!

Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam.

 

[LTeeple]

I can certainly see the value in such a product!

Best wishes with that.


Cheers!
Laura

 

[jstreich]

You can do it even easier than that, with ICQ and a cell that has ICQ on it. I currently have a way to control xmms with ICQ, but I could make it execute any command... Then it becomes as secure as the IM ... but only as secure as your IM

[plug=shameless]

http://game-master.us/phpx-3.4.0/

[/plug]

 

[Trevoke]

gaim-encryption plugin.

'nuff said.

Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam.

 

[marsd]

Personally I wouldn't want it..however I have used a
hardware device attached to a serial port and a power
adapter based device that allowed remote reboots in much
the same way. The power device allowed a phone call
in and was a much safer alternative IMO.

 

[Tarwn]

I'd like to see someone attach a modem to their box, call in from a cell, and know how to whistle up a reboot

 

[stefanwagner]

Shouldn't something be possible with an apache running on the Linuxbox, and accessing it via an wap-handy?

I don't have a wap-handy, but if I was seeking for a qnd solution, I would run my mailclient (thunderbird) on the linux-box, with a filter, to catch only specific topics as a kind of security-by-obscurity login, and grep with cron in the asssociated folder for new messages, to run.

seeking a job as java-programmer in Berlin:

http://home.arcor.de/hirnstrom/bewerbung

 

[jouell]

Aha.

Good points, all of them.

I have no control over my MX compnay records.
I also want not to /have/ to put a box in the DMZ.

So this way , the script works for any box on my net assuming I setup SSH for the the linux box to enter w/o a password (public key).


I encourage more feedback.

If any is curious to try it out, just let me know. The website is very basic, but sufficient to get an ambitious user going.

 

[unixfreak]

I had set a system like this up at a company I worked for. Worked really well.

Cheers

 

[jouell]

Ok, So I am looking at how to secure the email from ISP->linux box to stop hackers from sending arbitrary commands. I can filter based on the send address but that seems weak.

Any ideas?

 

[jstreich]

Some silly security ideas:

Force the e-mail to be signed, use an encryption method and write a tiny app for the cell-phone to generate the same encrpytion and signature. Use a pre selected list of keys for the encryption so that the encryption is rotating (that way if someone incepts and reads one e-mail, and tries to send that same e-mail again later, it'll fail to execute the command).

[plug=shameless]

http://game-master.us/phpx-3.4.0/

[/plug]

 

[rzs0502]

We initially attached a cell phone to the serial port of an IBM server and wrote a C program for the interface to the device.
The idea was to just send sms's with the sms program we wrote in Python.
We've adapted it so it can recieve sms's and process them, if the sender's cell number is authorised to do so.


"If you always do what you've always done, you will always be where you've always been."

 

[jouell]

rzs0502,

That is a great idea too!
Is the code open source?

-John

 

[jouell]

OK I secured it.

Check out the site for the new protocol specs.

 

[jouell]

Updated unix / linux script:

http://www.rootshell.be/~jouell/unix/webremote.html

Able to combat brute force hacks even if your cell phone is stolen AND they know the proper email to send to!

=)

-john

 

[jouell]

Working better.

Now at

http://www.ouellations.com/cellmate/

and Written in Feb 2006 Sysadmin FYI:

http://www.samag.com/articles/2006/0602/

 

[stefanwagner]

Hm. Time to "Thank jouell for this valuable post." , imho.

seeking a job as java-programmer in Berlin:

http://home.arcor.de/hirnstrom/bewerbung

 

[drange]

If your phone supports Java, why not use a SSH client?

 

[jouell]

drange,

Good Question.

I'd love to use ssh on my cell phone! I don't have Java.

This makes those who don't have it able to play in the game.

I think this thread has been beaten pretty well, I started a wiki for discussions, etc....

http://www.ouellations.com/tikiwiki/tiki-view_forum.php?forumId=2

All ideas are welcome!
-John