Short Takes – 2-22-25

BESS cyber physical risk. LinkedIn.com/pulse article. Pull quote: “Beyond physical degradation risks, cybersecurity threats pose an additional concern. Because lithium-ion cells are vulnerable to thermal runaway, they operate within a controlled voltage range, generally between 2.5V and 4.2V, depending on the chemistry. The BMS continuously monitors voltage balance, SoC, temperature, and current flow to prevent unsafe conditions. However, cyber threats targeting voltage and current measurements, as well as the algorithms calculating SoC and SoH, pose risks. Manipulating SoC or SoH data could lead to incorrect charging behaviors, excessive cycling, or failure to detect aging-related faults, ultimately increasing the likelihood of overheating, thermal runaway, or fire.”

Graphene Tattoos: The Future Of Continuous Health Monitoring? HackADay.com article. Pull quote: “Graphene, a single layer of carbon atoms, is key to the development of these tattoos. They are flexible, transparent, and conductive, making them ideal for bioelectronics. The tattoos are so thin and pliable that users won’t even feel them on their skin. In early tests, graphene electronic tattoos (GETs) have been used to measure bioimpedance, which correlates with blood pressure and other vital signs. The real breakthrough here, however, is the continuous, non-invasive monitoring that could enable early detection of conditions that usually go unnoticed until it’s too late.”

Exclusive: US could cut Ukraine's access to Starlink internet services over minerals, say sources. Reuters.com article. Pull quote: “Ukraine's continued access to SpaceX-owned Starlink was brought up in discussions between U.S. and Ukrainian officials after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy turned down an initial proposal from U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the sources said.”

Pen testing avionics under ED-203a. PentestPartners.com blog post. Pull quote: “But in addition to looking for known vulnerabilities, security refutation must be conducted. This starts with the premise that the system is insecure unless proven otherwise. To get the best outcome this should be conducted in as transparent a manner as possible with the pen testers having access to the design teams, documentation, source code and instrumented equipment that fully represents the avionics in normal use.”

Voltage Glitching with the Pico Glitcher and Findus. SYSS.com blog post. Pull quote: “A couple of months ago, SySS IT security expert Dr. Matthias Kesenheimer released his own open-source voltage glitching hardware device, the Pico Glitcher, together with his fault injection software library findus. Using this toolchain, it is quite easy to perform voltage glitching attacks, as I’ve recently learned myself and want to show you with an example.”

Transparent Solar Windows Could Change the Future of Sustainable Architecture. I-HLS.com article. Pull quote: “Next Energy Technologies previously showcased smaller OPV windows, which were capable of offsetting 20% to 25% of a typical commercial building’s energy usage. These windows also absorb infrared light, which helps reduce heating and cooling costs by lowering the demand for HVAC systems. The new larger window, with its high efficiency, is expected to play a critical role in transforming buildings into self-sustaining, energy-efficient structures, the company believes.”

Asteroid YR4 impact odds plummet as NASA changes threat level of 'city-killer'. LiveScience.com article. Pull quote: “On Wednesday (Feb. 19), NASA more than halved the chances to 1 in 67, or 1.5%. Now, at the time of writing on Friday (Feb. 21), the odds are at 1 in 360, or 0.28%, according to NASA's Center for Near Earth Object Studies. The asteroid is also slightly more likely to hit the moon, with a lunar impact probability increasing to 1%, according to NASA's Planetary Defence blog.”