📑 Table of Contents▼
BusKill
Original authorMichael Altfield
DeveloperBusKill Development Team
ReleaseAugust 2, 2020; 5 years ago (2020-08-02)[1]
Stable release
v0.7.0 / June 17, 2023; 3 years ago (2023-06-17)
Written inPython
Operating systemLinux, macOS, Windows, Qubes OS[2]
TypeAnti-forensic
LicenseCC BY-SA, GPLv3[3]
Website

BusKill is a project that makes a physical cord intended to lock a computer when the user walks away.

It is an open-source hardware and software project that designs computer kill cords to protect the confidentiality of the system's data from physical theft. The hardware designs are licensed CC BY-SA and the software is licensed GPLv3. BusKill cables are available commercially from the official website or through authorized distributors.

History

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The original BusKill prototype from 2017
The BusKill Kit in 2022

The first computer kill cord was built by Michael Altfield in 2017.[5][6]

The term "BusKill" was coined by Altfield in January 2020 when publishing the first BusKill build and udev usage instructions (Linux-only),[1][7][8] and it was ported by cyberkryption from Linux to Windows a couple weeks later.[9][10] The name BusKill is an amalgamation of "Bus" from USB and "Kill" from kill cord.[11]

The project's official website launched the following month in February 2020.[12]

The first macOS version of the BusKill app was released in May 2020[13] by Steven Johnson.

A cross-platform rewrite of the software based on Kivy was released in August 2020 with support for Linux, macOS, and Windows.[14]

In December 2021, Alt Shift International OÜ ran a crowdfunding campaign to manufacture BusKill cables on Crowd Supply.[15][16][17] The campaign raised $18,507 by January 2022.[18]

Hardware

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The BusKill cable is a kill cord that physically tethers a user to their computer with a USB cable.[19][20]

One end of the cable plugs into a computer. The other end of the cable is a carabiner that attaches to the user.[21]

In the middle of the cable is a magnetic breakaway coupler, to allow the cable to be safely separated at any angle without physically damaging the computer or the user.[22][23]

A 3D-printable hardware BusKill cable is currently under development.[24][25][26]

Software

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The BusKill project maintains a cross-platform GUI app that can either lock the screen or shutdown the computer when the cable's connection to the computer is severed and the app is in the "armed" state.[19][27][28]

Use

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If the computer is separated from the user, then a magnetic breakaway in the cable causes a USB hotplug removal event to execute a trigger in the app.[29]

The trigger executed by the BusKill cable's removal can lock the screen, shutdown, or securely erase the LUKS header and master encryption keys within a few seconds of the cable's separation.[30][31][32]

If combined with full disk encryption, then these triggers can be used to ensure the confidentiality of data or be used as a counter-forensics device.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Altfield, Michael (2020-01-02). "Introducing BusKill: A Kill Cord for your Laptop". Michael Altfield’s Tech Blog. Retrieved 2022-07-02. This post will introduce a simple udev rule and ~$20 in USB hardware that effectively implements a kill cord Dead Man Switch to trigger your machine to self-destruct in the event that you're kicked out of the helm position.
  2. ^ Altfield, Michael (2022-01-04). "A Laptop Kill Cord for QubesOS". Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  3. ^ "License". BusKill. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  4. ^ https://www.buskill.in/buskill-onion-service-tor/
  5. ^ Helen Leigh (Jan 14, 2022). Teardown Session 17: OpSec and Privacy with Michael Altfield (Video Interview). Berlin, Germany: Crowd Supply. Event occurs at 12 minutes, 35 seconds. Retrieved 2022-07-02. I decided to build this for myself actually in 2017, and then I published the article in 2020.
  6. ^ Sasidhar (January 2022). "An interview of Michael Altfield". Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  7. ^ Winder, Davey (Jan 3, 2020). "This $20 USB Cable Is A Dead Man's Switch For Your Laptop". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  8. ^ Korben (2020-02-06). "Un câble USB pour autodétruire votre ordinateur sous Linux s'il est volé ? Voici BusKill !" (in French). fr:Korben. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  9. ^ @cyberkryption (January 18, 2020). "Here's my port of @MichaelAltfield #BusKill to windows in python" (Tweet). Retrieved 2022-07-02 – via Twitter.
  10. ^ "GitHub - BusKill/buskill-windows: Windows port for the BusKill Kill Cord". GitHub. 4 January 2022. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  11. ^ "Interview with Michael Altfield, the Mind Behind BusKill - the World's First USB Kill Cord - Dark Net Daily". Archived from the original on 2021-12-17.
  12. ^ @BusKillin (February 17, 2020). "Due to popular demand, #BusKill now has a website!" (Tweet). Retrieved 2022-07-02 – via Twitter.
  13. ^ "Commits · BusKill/buskill-mac · GitHub". GitHub. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  14. ^ "Commits · BusKill/buskill-app". GitHub. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  15. ^ Nickel, Oliver (Dec 16, 2021). "Magnetisches Kabel dient als Killswitch für Notebooks" (in German). Computec. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  16. ^ "ログイン中のPCが盗まれた時に強制的にPCをシャットダウンしてデータを保護してくれるUSBデバイス「BusKill」" (in Japanese). jp:GIGAZINE. Dec 16, 2021. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  17. ^ "Este cable USB bloquea o destruye un ordenador para proteger los datos en caso de robo" (in Spanish). 20 minutos. Dec 17, 2021. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  18. ^ "BusKill". Crowd Supply. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  19. ^ a b Michael Altfield (Jan 18, 2022). BusKill Cross-Platform Demo (v0.4.0) (Video Demo). Berlin, Germany. Event occurs at 1 minute, 5 seconds. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  20. ^ Cimpanu, Catalin (Jan 2, 2020). "New USB cable kills your Linux laptop if stolen in a public place". ZDNet. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  21. ^ "Hardware User Guide". Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  22. ^ "Assembly of components". Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  23. ^ Kan, Michael (Jan 2, 2020). "Programmer's USB Cable Can Kill Laptop If Machine is Yanked Away". PCMag. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  24. ^ "Design Shell in FreeCAD". GitHub.
  25. ^ Hill, Ash (May 2, 2023). "3D Print Your Own USB BusKill Module to Protect Data". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  26. ^ Halfacree, Gareth (May 8, 2024). "Melanie Allen Wants to Bring Dead-Man Switches to All with a 3D-Printable BusKill Adapter". Hackster. Retrieved 2024-05-31.
  27. ^ Crider, Michael (Dec 17, 2021). "This USB 'dead man's switch' locks down (or kills) snatched laptops". PC World. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  28. ^ "Software User Guide". Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  29. ^ "What is BusKill?". Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  30. ^ Altfield, Michael (Dec 28, 2021). "LUKS Header Shredder (BusKill Self-Destruct Trigger)". Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  31. ^ Shilov, Anton (Dec 15, 2021). "BusKill USB Cable Now Available: A PC Kill Switch for Data Protection". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  32. ^ Whittaker, Zack (Dec 17, 2021). "This USB 'kill cord' can instantly wipe your laptop if snatched or stolen". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
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