Lets say I have a compromised router/networkconnection.
I use a Qubes OS pc to go on the internet through the compromised router/networkconnection.
Is it then possible for the intruder to see the passwords that I enter and is being sent through the compromised router/networkconnection ?
Yes, but only if you send the password in the clear.
Don't do this. In fact don't do *anything* in the clear.
Only use encrypted connections - https for web sites, TLS or other encryption methods for
SMTP/POP/IMAP to get mail, ssh, etc, etc.
Encrypt any valuable data.
Trust nothing.
Okay so if I have been using a https connection, then it’s no problem… ?
For a simple passive man-in-the-middle attacker, yes, encrypting connections is sufficient to protect them.
For attackers willing to perform active attacks, or having access to a lot of resources (at least tens of thousands USD), it depends.
Okay so if I have been using a https connection, then it's no problem... ?
If they use a wrong certificate for a MITM attack they might decode your connection... It means nobody between you and the "next endpoint" can read your password, but how to ensure what the "next endpoint" really is?
Okay so if I have been using a https connection, then it's no problem... ?
If they use a wrong certificate for a MITM attack they might decode your connection... It means nobody between you and the "next endpoint" can read your password, but how to ensure what the "next endpoint" really is?
Well actually they could construct a terribly poor or well-known "secret" key so that the encryption is "pre-broken" (can easily be decrypted).
Ulrich is right. First, look at the "certificate story". These are meant
ensuring that you can trust your endpoint. Certificates are
pre-installed in your browser, and one should check (and rarely does)
which ones to trust (and how much). Invented examples: If they are owned
by chinese or russian telecom company, do you trust it? State agencies
could intervene. Or british telecom (5eyes??). The actually used
hierarchical trust model might be a failure by design.
And then there are exploits. Example: some years ago Moxi Marlinspike
found the funny zero-byte error due to string handling: He proved that
you could buy for example the domain "com",0,"mand.org" and have the
trusted instances sign your subdomain google.com",0",mand.org" which
any firefox (at least) did recognise as valid certificate for google.com
since they considered the 0 byte as "end of string". You are not safe
from such type of exploits.
Conclusion as usual: if your life depends on it, do not trust https.
Just for clarity, if your HTTPS connection is compromised, it probably will not matter much whether your router is compromised or not. With such in mind, so long as you use an HTTPS connection, you probably don’t need to worry much about your router. As haa...@web.de implied, not all certificates are equal (in respect of risk), and you may personally trust some more than others. With respect to the other risks, perhaps using SSH and VPNs might be more secure? Using MFA, multi-step authentication, and/or regularly changing your password, can help mitigate damage in respect of your security credentials being captured.
Kind regards,
Mark Fernandes