Facts for Prelims (FFP)
Source: TH
Context: A research paper titled “A Practical Deep Learning-Based Acoustic Side Channel Attack on Keyboards” published with the support of Durham University’s ethics committee reveals that Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be utilized to decipher passwords by analysing the sound produced by keystrokes.
- This method, known as Acoustic Side Channel Attacks (ASCA), exploits the acoustic signals of keyboard clicks to interpret typed information.
- Despite being around for decades, the advancement of AI and deep learning has heightened the risks associated with ASCAs.
- The accuracy of ASCAs has been demonstrated through experiments, achieving up to 95% accuracy in recognizing keystrokes from various sources like nearby phones and laptop keyboards.
The paper emphasizes that users can adopt defence strategies, such as altering typing techniques, using touch-based typing, employing stronger passwords with varied cases and avoiding easily predictable phrases, to mitigate the threat of ASCAs.
About Acoustic Side-Channel Attacks:
An Acoustic Side Channel Attack (ASCA) is a type of cybersecurity attack that exploits sound or acoustic signals to gather sensitive information.
In the context of computer security, a side channel attack refers to a method where an attacker targets unintended information leakage or signals emitted by a system, rather than directly attacking the cryptographic algorithms themselves.
