Google clue reveals public HP printers may spawn serious network threat

A simple, strategic Google search has revealed that over 86, 000 public HP printers could allow cyber-criminals to successfully penetrate corporate networks and/or steal sensitive documents.

As originally reported by Network World's Antone Gonsalves, a U.K-based mobile app developer named Andrew Howard recently took to the public blogosphere to raise the issue of printer security, by demonstrating that a "quick, well-crafted Google search" could yield as many as 86,800 results for publicly accessible Hewlett-Packard printers. Howard reportedly wrote in a blog post, as cited by Gonsalves' report: "There are security concerns here, as many printer models have known exploits, which can be used as an entry point to a private network."

To wit: the reporting additionally reveals that, earlier this month, Sebastian Guerrero, a researcher at viaForensics, found that vulnerabilities in the ubiquitous JetDirect technology that could be used to exploit HP printers. JetDirect is used to attach a printer to a local area network (LAN), so that many users can access the device. The vulnerabilities in the technology could enable hackers to retrieve previously printed documents and to crash vulnerable printers, said the report.

Full Story:Printers join fray in network vulnerability landscape (networkworld.com)

Product note: Serial-to-Ethernet 2-port switch secures printing minus new cabling infrastructure