Handbook of Information Security: Threats, Vulnerabilities, Prevention, Detection, and Management, Volume 3

Bluetooth Security

Susanne Wetzel, Stevens Institute of Technology

Introduction

Details of the Bluetooth Specification

Bluetooth Security Mechanisms

Security Architectures and Access Policies

Security Weaknesses in the Bluetooth Specification

Eavesdropping and Impersonation

Location Attacks

Man-in-the-Middle Attacks

Cipher Vulnerabilities

Other Vulnerabilities

Discussion on the Feasibility of the Attacks

Countermeasures to the Vulnerabilities in Bluetooth Security

Comparison of Security Mechanisms in Bluetooth and IEEE 802.11b

Conclusion

Glossary

Cross References

References

INTRODUCTION

In 1998, the five computer and telecommunication companies Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Nokia, and Toshiba formed an alliance to develop and promote a wireless communication technology that became known as Bluetooth. Since then, the membership of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group has increased significantly, and both the number of as well as the market for Bluetooth products have increased considerably.

Bluetooth was designed to be a short-range, low-cost technology eliminating wires and cables between devices such as personal digital assistants (PDAs), cell phones, printers, faxes, headsets, cars, and turnstiles. A particular focus in the design of the communication technology was to not require a fixed infrastructure but to allow for ad hoc networking instead, that is, to enable Bluetooth devices to communicate with each other in dynamically changing constellations. Consequently, these manifold advantages ...