Group Uses Cold Air to Hack Security Software A group led by a
Princeton University computer security researcher has developed
a simple method to steal encrypted information stored on
computer hard disks. The technique, which could undermine
security software protecting critical data on computers, is as
easy as chilling a computer memory chip with a blast of frigid
air from a can of dust remover. Encryption software is widely
used by companies and government agencies, notably in portable
computers that are especially susceptible to theft. The
development, which was described on the group’s Web site
Thursday, could also have implications for the protection of
encrypted personal data from prosecutors. The move, which cannot
be carried out remotely, exploits a little-known vulnerability
of the dynamic random access, or DRAM, chip. Those chips
temporarily hold data, including the keys to modern data-
scrambling algorithms. When the computer’s electrical power is
shut off, the data, including the keys, is supposed