Penetration testing wireless keyboards : Are your devices vulnerable?

Abstract: With an ever-increasing amount of cyberespionage and cybercrime, any potential attack vector into a computer system is worthy of investigation. One such vector could be through the wireless keyboard the user themselves use and trust. If an attacker was able to intercept the traffic between the keyboard and the computer they could spy on every keystroke that is being sent to the computer. Additionally, they could potentially inject keystrokes as if they were sitting at the computer themselves. This thesis evaluated 10 different keyboards that were purchased in common consumer electronic stores and 8 of them were found to have new substantial flaws that made it possible to reliably listen to every keystroke sent by the keyboards, as well as allow an attacker to send keystrokes to the connected computer, indirectly giving the attacker full control of the computer. It was concluded that wireless keyboards should not be used in situations where sensitive information is handled regardless of what the keyboard manufacturer claims, as it creates a potential attack vector that is otherwise nonexistent.