ednos

My father has installed key logging software on my brother's computer. I'm currently developing a solution, but I'm wondering if anyone else has a good idea or a link to software that will prevent this key logger from being effective. My current idea is scrambling the key presses, although it's turning out to be difficult to code. An on-screen keyboard isn't fast enough; he needs it for IMing me. He's started to learn to type in rot18 and Dvorak (conversion plugins are simple), but that's a big pain and is almost as slow as hunting and pecking on an on-screen keyboard.

The software, eBlaster, also logs chat and email, but we've circumvented that with Pidgin-Encryption and PGP. The asymmetry has kept us safe so far; essentially the spy software intercepts one half of each conversation.

The only requirement is that any software used must be free. I don't feel like pirating software and neither of us can pay for it. I'd rather write my own if that's the only alternative. He's already tried KeyScrambler Free, I think it's called, which works great for Firefox but doesn't cover the other software we use. (Yes, we tried using http://www.meebo.com/ for chats; the software still intercepts both sides of the conversation, and it doesn't support PGP.)

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The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. ~ Bertrand Russell
I have a tendency to key out three or four things and then let them battle for supremacy while I key, so there's a lot of backspacing as potential statements are slaughtered and eaten by the victors. ~ Magna Centipede

ScratchMonkey

I suggest installing a hardware keylogger on Dad's computer. Let's see what he's hiding!

http://www.keyghost.com/
http://www.usbkeylogger.org/diy.html

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Sig

BeSiege82

to be free: try CNET.

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lTG-Irrl BeSiege82
A platoon leader in his own right...

"Courage grows strong at the wound."
"Virescit Vulnere Virtus."

"{My grump-o-meter starts to make a high-pitched whine when I point it at your post, though.}" -- Axis

westyfield

Why has your father done this anyway? Sorry if it's a too personal question, but I'm just curious. Also, do you think he has installed it on yours too?

I'm afraid I don't know any ways to get around it, I presume it can't be uninstalled...?

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|TG-irr| westyfield

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Irregular since Sept 15th, 2007

Greflin

As a father, if I felt it was needed, there would be a key logger or any other means needed to secure my children.

ednos

He doesn't trust the Internet, which is understandable, and he doesn't trust my brother to stay safe on the Internet, which is also understandable. I can guarantee you that I would indeed be monitoring the activity of my children as well. However, I feel the need right now, in a time of family crisis, to communicate in a private channel with my brother, as I don't have physical access to him and I don't exactly have a phone (and can't afford a pay phone).

He definitely hasn't touched mine. I know every process and service running on my computer, and I monitor all network traffic on my machine (ethereal/wireshark). Yes, I'm paranoid about security, but I *am* a Unix user forced to use Windows. It's like making an ordinary person live in a thin glass house precariously balanced on a ledge above shark-infested reefs. (The things I do for ArmA...)

__________________

The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. ~ Bertrand Russell
I have a tendency to key out three or four things and then let them battle for supremacy while I key, so there's a lot of backspacing as potential statements are slaughtered and eaten by the victors. ~ Magna Centipede

MagnaCentipede

If it's a software keylogger, boot a live linux. Knoppix or Ubuntu; whatever.

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ednos

We don't want to prevent everything. The software still needs to send reports. We just need certain communication to be kept private. He does have Linux which he boots up in the case of an emergency; he's using either Gentoo or Ubuntu. We need to keep the guise of normal computer use, though.

__________________

The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. ~ Bertrand Russell
I have a tendency to key out three or four things and then let them battle for supremacy while I key, so there's a lot of backspacing as potential statements are slaughtered and eaten by the victors. ~ Magna Centipede

Greflin

What about voice to text? Would that count as a keystroke?

Trooper

skype?

ednos

Voice to text might work, but then we might as well use Teamspeak, Skype, Google Talk, or something like that. He doesn't trust voice out loud to be safe.

__________________

The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. ~ Bertrand Russell
I have a tendency to key out three or four things and then let them battle for supremacy while I key, so there's a lot of backspacing as potential statements are slaughtered and eaten by the victors. ~ Magna Centipede

BeSiege82

this may sound weird, but does he have a a psp and a mic head set for it?

__________________
lTG-Irrl BeSiege82
A platoon leader in his own right...

"Courage grows strong at the wound."
"Virescit Vulnere Virtus."

"{My grump-o-meter starts to make a high-pitched whine when I point it at your post, though.}" -- Axis

ednos

No.

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The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. ~ Bertrand Russell
I have a tendency to key out three or four things and then let them battle for supremacy while I key, so there's a lot of backspacing as potential statements are slaughtered and eaten by the victors. ~ Magna Centipede

BeSiege82

Dang, there goes my plan for skype...

__________________
lTG-Irrl BeSiege82
A platoon leader in his own right...

"Courage grows strong at the wound."
"Virescit Vulnere Virtus."

"{My grump-o-meter starts to make a high-pitched whine when I point it at your post, though.}" -- Axis

sgt fetterman

sounds like ya two might have been doing something murky that your dad wants to know about. if it was my kid, I cut you off at the router also. then if you needed net use for school, then you be using my spare notebook at my desk under supervision.
yes I'm a hard ass.
there is ways around key logging besides using a linux live cd.

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{Once again, Fetterman wins "Grumpiest Pirate of the Week" award.} "Axis of Eeevil"

Proud Member of "TG-IRR" Since 14 Sept 2007.

Never give up, never give in. Fight until you die, or until you win. Failure does not come from a lack of knowledge or skill... It comes from a lack of will.