Meetings

Steganography Over The Covert Channels Of TCP/IP

by Hal Wigoda

Tuesday October 9th 2012 at 7:00pm
Wheaton, Illinois Institute of Technology - Rice Campus, Room 103

Abstract

Steganography is about concealing the very existence of a message itself. Like cryptography, steganography is secretive. Data can be hidden in web pages and/or the embedded images that pass over the Internet, a relatively easy task to perform and perhaps just as easy to examine. An even more surreptitious and unique way to hide messages would be in the unused fields of the packet headers of the TCP/IP protocol suite. Such methods involve utilization of a covert channel. A covert channel is a communication channel that allows two cooperating processes to transfer information in a manner that violates the system's security policy. The packets used for carrying the message can appear innocuous and beyond suspicion. But data can be hidden in other data, a picture, an audio or video file, or even in the network packet as it moves across the wire. This is the covert channel of the Internet TCP/IP.

Once we have finished, we will adjourn to nearby Cozymel's Mexican restaurant for food and drinks.

Bio

Hal is an information technology expert and student of many years, having started with Fortran V (Watfiv) at computer camp at the University of Missouri at Rolla. He worked with Cobol for 15 years and moved onto the Open Systems of Unix and Linux. Involuntarily retired during the downsizing of the new millennium, he attended DePaul University to pursue his first undergraduate degree, in Security. He has done much research on the subject of Steganography. He is looking for employment and project work.

Getting to the meeting

The next general meeting of UniForum Chicago will be:

        IIT Rice Campus
        Room 103
        201 East Loop Road
        Wheaton, IL 60187-8489
Directions to IIT - Rice Campus in Wheaton
The 19-acre campus is located just northeast of the intersection of Naperville and Butterfield roads in south Wheaton's Danada development. The campus is three miles west of the Butterfield Road interchange of the North-South Tollway (I-355) and two miles north of the Naperville Road interchange of the East-West Tollway (I-88).

From the North or South: From I-355 (North-South Tollway), exit westbound at Rt.56/Butterfield Road and proceed west 3 1/2 miles on Butterfield Road to East Loop Road. Turn right onto East Loop Road (Phillip's 66 Gas Station on the corner); the campus will be on your right about a block north of Butterfield Road, behind Cozymel's. Park in the Student parking lot behind the building. Room 103 is the first room inside the north enterance.

From the I-294 (Tri-State Tollway), take the I-88 (East-West Tollway) westbound and follow directions "From the East or West" below.

From the East or West: From I-88 (East-West Tollway), take the Naperville Road exit. At the traffic light, turn north (right when exiting westbound, left when exiting eastbound) to Warrenville Road. After the short distance, turn right at the traffic light to get to Naperville Road and turn left (north) for 1-2 miles to Rt. 56/Butterfield Road. Turn right onto Rt. 56/Butterfield Road and proceed 1/4 mile to the first traffic light (East Loop Road). Turn left on to East Loop Road, (Phillip's 66 Gas station on the corner); the campus will be on your right about a block north of Butterfield Road, behind Cozymel's. If you arrive late, we suggest that you park and enter at the main doors at the south end of the building. IIT has started locking the other doors at 7pm, so the north doors by room 103 might be locked once we've started the meeting.

Room 103 is the first room inside the north enterance.


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