What is the car whisperer?

The car whisperer is a hacking technique that can be used by attackers to hack a hands-free Bluetooth in-car system. Attackers connect the Bluetooth device to a Linux system and inject audio to or record audio from a bypassing car. Attackers can easily use the car whisperer to invade privacy. They can listen to the conversation inside a car and exploit it illegally.

Who discovered the car whisperer?

The car whisperer was discovered by a group of European wireless security experts called Trifinite Group in 2005. This software was developed by Trifinite Group as a proof of concept to illustrate the vulnerabilities of a hands-free Bluetooth in-car system.

How does the car whisperer attack work?

The car whisperer software takes advantage of the fact that most hands-free in-car Bluetooth systems need a simple four-digit security key. In most cases, the security key is ‘0000’ or ‘1234’. Many car manufacturers use the same security key for all their Bluetooth systems, and this security key is enough to grant permission to access the devices. This results in the vulnerability using which the car whisperer attack can be perpetrated.

To perpetrate the car whisperer attack, an attacker uses a Linux laptop and a few easily available hardware like a directional antenna. Usually, the range of Bluetooth is limited to a few meters only. But, there is a technique called Bluesniping which can be used by the attackers to track a Bluetooth system up to a mile. BlueSniping uses specialized hardware called BlueSniping Gun. This BlueSniping Gun can easily be made with a few hardware pieces like Folding Stock, Yagi Antenna, and Linux-powered embedded PC. Interested readers can find more information on Bluesniping here: What is Bluesniping?

Using this specialized hardware, the attacker can hack the Bluetooth system in the car and connect it to a Linux laptop. After that, they can inject audio into the system or record conversations within the car.