Motorola Sb4200 Cable Modem Hacked
Motorola's cable modems hacked Simon Wright, 9 Feb 2004 Motorola's Surfboard cable modems have been hacked to give users complete control of the modem settings, according to an article on The Register this week. Under the DOCSIS standard (used by Telstra and Optus), cable modems can only accept configuration changes sent down the HFC cable from the provider.
So I got a letter from Cox in Las Vegas stating that I need to buy a new modem from them for 60 bucks because they are going to DOCSIS 2.0, and anything not compliant won't work after March 1.
Does anyone know anything about this? It sure seems like my SB4200 isn't going to cut the mustard, but complete loss of service? That seems harsh, considering we already have standards like USB that function fine without everything being the same.
I sure as hell can't afford 60 bucks right now, or anytime soon..ideas anyone?
[edit]Correction - the letter says March 3 they will disconnect all out of date modems from their network, not March 1.
Uncapping, in the context of cable modems, refers to a number of activities performed to alter an Internet service provider's modem settings. It is sometimes done for the sake of bandwidth (i.e. by buying a 512kbit/s access modem and then altering it to 10Mbit/s), pluggable interfaces (as by using more than one public ID), or any configurable options a DOCSIS modem can offer. However, uncapping may be considered an illegal activity, such as theft of service.[1]
The author seems unwilling to let her main characters suffer too much, though and creates secondary romantic partners that are shadows of the main love interest.
Methods[edit]
There are several methods used to uncap a cable modem, by hardware, software, tricks, alterations, and modifications.
One of the most popular modifications is used on Motorola modems (such as the SB3100, SB4100, and SB4200 models); by spoofing the Internet service provider's TFTP server, the modem is made to accept a different configuration file than the one provided by the TFTP server. This configuration file tells the modem the download and upload caps it should enforce. An example of spoofing would be to edit the configuration file, which requires a DOCSIS editor, or replacing the configuration file with one obtained from a faster modem (e.g. through a Gnutella network).
An alternate method employs dhcpforce. By flooding a modem with faked DHCPpackets (which contain configuration filename, TFTP, IP, etc.), one can convince the modem to accept any desired configuration file, even one from one's own server (provided the server is routed, of course).
Another more advanced method is to attach a TTL to the modem's RS-232 adapter, and get access to the modem's console directly to make it download new firmware, which can then be configured via a simple web interface. Examples include SIGMA, a firmwareadd-on that expands the current features of an underlying firmware, and others.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^McMillan, Robert (November 2, 2009). 'Cable modem hacker busted by feds'. Computerworld. IDG News Service.
Hackers have known for years that certain models of cable modem, [sic] such as the Motorola Surfboard 5100, can be hacked to run faster on a network, a process known as uncapping. However, the question of whether uncapping a modem is illegal is 'not clear.'