Optical Time-Domain Eavesdropping Risks of CRT Displays

[Arnold G. Reinhold]

An historical note: In the early 1970's I did some contract 
programming work at the Air Force Cambridge Research Lab at Hanscom 
Field in Bedford, Mass.  Their main computer was a CDC 6600, a super 
computer in its day (60-bit words, 10 MHz clock). 
http://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/cdc6600.html

The wall separating the computer room from the hallway had a large 
picture window facing the console, with its two (vector-scanned) 
CRTs. 
http://www.research.microsoft.com/users/gbell/craytalk/sld031.htm. 
There were curtains on the window that were to be  drawn whenever 
classified programs were run. In addition, I was told, there was a 
large board that the operators were supposed to place over the 
console.  I don't know if these precautions were based on analyses 
similar to Kuhn's excellent paper or general paranoia, but there is a 
lot to be said for the later.

Arnold Reinhold


At 1:09 PM +0000 3/12/02, Peter Fairbrother wrote:
> > John Young wrote:
>
>> Markus Kuhn has released this after learning of
>> Joe Loughry's announcement.
>>
>> -----
>>
>> Announced 5 March 2002.
>> To be presented at IEEE Oakland conference, May 2002
>>
>>
>
> > http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~mgk25/ieee02-optical.pdf
>>
>> Optical Time-Domain Eavesdropping Risks of CRT Displays
>>
>> Markus G. Kuhn
>> University of Cambridge, Computer Laboratory
>> JJ Thomson Avenue, Cambridge CB3 0FD, UK
>> mgk25 at cl.cam.ac.uk
>>
>> Abstract
>
>I've snipped the abstract, because it's dry as ditchwater. I can only
>recommend you read this, or at least look at the pictures, if you haven't
>already.
>
>Wow.
>
>Makes Tempest look like a toy. Nice (?) one, Markus.
>
>-- Peter Fairbrother
>
>
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