Secret Life of Rogue Devices: Lost IT Assets on the Public Marketplace

Explore a fascinating 30-minute DEF CON conference talk investigating the concerning phenomenon of sensitive IT assets appearing on public marketplaces. Dive into a comprehensive research project that uncovers the scale and implications of corporate laptops, hardware prototypes, backup servers, and even classified government computers being sold in secondary markets. Learn about innovative technical approaches including scraping 150 million images from global second-hand marketplaces, building an OCR cluster using old iPhones, reverse engineering Chinese applications, and engaging with underground collector communities. Gain critical insights into the risks and realities of lost IT assets, their journey through various markets, and the broader cybersecurity implications for organizations worldwide.