TechCentralTechCentral
    Facebook Twitter YouTube LinkedIn
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    NEWSLETTER
    • News

      South Africa’s ‘silent revolution’ as those with cash go solar

      15 August 2022

      SA coal giant Seriti Resources in pivot to renewables

      15 August 2022

      Tencent, TikTok share details of prized algorithms with Beijing

      15 August 2022

      Fixing SA’s power crisis is not complex: it simply takes the will to do better

      12 August 2022

      Consortium makes unsolicited bid for state’s 40% stake in Telkom

      12 August 2022
    • World

      Institutions eye crypto but retail investors remain nervous

      15 August 2022

      Tencent woes mount, even after $560-billion selloff

      12 August 2022

      Huawei just booked its first sales rise since US blacklisting

      12 August 2022

      Apple remains upbeat about iPhone sales even as Android world suffers

      12 August 2022

      Ether at two-month high as upgrade to blockchain passes major test

      12 August 2022
    • In-depth

      African unicorn Flutterwave battles fires on multiple fronts

      11 August 2022

      The length of Earth’s days has been increasing – and no one knows why

      7 August 2022

      As Facebook fades, the Mad Men of advertising stage a comeback

      2 August 2022

      Crypto breaks the rules. That’s the point

      27 July 2022

      E-mail scams are getting chillingly personal

      17 July 2022
    • Podcasts

      Qush on infosec: why prevention is always better than cure

      11 August 2022

      e4’s Adri Führi on encouraging more women into tech careers

      10 August 2022

      How South Africa can woo more women into tech

      4 August 2022

      Book and check-in via WhatsApp? FlySafair is on it

      28 July 2022

      Interview: Why Dell’s next-gen PowerEdge servers change the game

      28 July 2022
    • Opinion

      No reason South Africa should have a shortage of electricity: Ramaphosa

      11 July 2022

      Ntshavheni’s bias against the private sector

      8 July 2022

      South Africa can no longer rely on Eskom alone

      4 July 2022

      Has South Africa’s advertising industry lost its way?

      21 June 2022

      Rob Lith: What Icasa’s spectrum auction means for SA companies

      13 June 2022
    • Company Hubs
      • 1-grid
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Amplitude
      • Atvance Intellect
      • Axiz
      • BOATech
      • CallMiner
      • Digital Generation
      • E4
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • IBM
      • Kyocera Document Solutions
      • Microsoft
      • Nutanix
      • One Trust
      • Pinnacle
      • Skybox Security
      • SkyWire
      • Tarsus on Demand
      • Videri Digital
      • Zendesk
    • Sections
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud computing
      • Consumer electronics
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Energy
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Motoring and transport
      • Public sector
      • Science
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home»Editor's pick»Telkom denies putting Web users at risk

    Telkom denies putting Web users at risk

    Editor's pick By Duncan McLeod9 July 2015
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email

    ethernet-640

    Telkom has rejected claims that it is employing the same techniques used by malicious hackers in so-called “man in the middle” attacks to edit code on websites in order to serve the telecommunications operator’s own content to end users.

    Johannesburg-based software developer Robert MacLean warns in a recent blog post that Telkom is adding JavaScript code to websites without the permission of website owners or of Telkom customers.

    The code, which MacLean says in only added on non-secure (that is, non-HTTPS) websites, is used to show subscribers to Telkom’s Internet service provider who also use its broadband ADSL service how much bandwidth they have left before they are capped.

    “Telkom is very cleverly intercepting certain calls and redirecting them, so that unless you are actively looking for this, it appears transparent to the website and the user. What they are doing is watching for JavaScript files to be requested, and then appending additional code into those files,” he says. This code is then used to manipulate Web pages, he adds.

    “Admittedly this is a relatively benign addition and in fact it may be seen as useful, and I can see it being sold that way to non-technical managers and executives,” MacLean writes. “Do not be fooled, though. Even this simple addition can cause major issues for you. It is impossible for Telkom to know what this addition will do to every website on the Web.”

    In short, Telkom is adding JavaScript code to each page and that code could interfere with the existing code and Web pages in unforeseen ways and ultimately can break a Web page, MacLean says. “The sheer size and complexity of the Internet says that it is impossible for them to know for sure that they are not breaking a single website.”

    Telkom, he says, is exposing its users to potential security risks, which he explains in greater technical detail in his blog post.

    Worse still, he says, having a server that can manipulate what traffic users are sending and receiving provides a “very easy point for someone to capture traffic” and see what Telkom’s users are doing on the Internet.

    This screenshot shows the Telkom Internet notification (image c/o Robert MacLean)
    This screenshot shows the Telkom Internet notification (image c/o Robert MacLean)

    “While I am sure they will tell you they take security very seriously and that they do not allow that type of access to employees, what is stopping an executive at a later stage from using this to prevent adverts from MTN showing up or causing Web pages that support the EFF or the DA to not load at all? Nothing, and they have the power to do that, without oversight and without your permission. Do you trust Telkom enough to not abuse that?”

    Lastly, the image displayed on users’ screens, alerting them of how much bandwidth they have left, is an extra overhead. “They are making you download more than 84,8kB of extra code and 120kB of extra images, plus the manipulation of the Web page slows down rendering,” MacLean writes. “In short, they are making the Web slower for you and helping use more of your bandwidth.”

    Asked to respond to MacLean’s claims, Telkom has denied that it is using a technique similar to a “man in the middle” attack.

    “In technical terms, we refer to it as an HTTP redirect, which injects JavaScript to overlay the [bandwidth usage] notification once the pre-determined threshold has been reached,” Telkom says.

    “HTTP redirect is a common mechanism used in service provider networks for content caching and to optimise video streaming and does not alter the Web service content. In this instance, it overlays a notification on usage that can be done on SMS or e-mail as well.

    “The in-browser notification has been purpose-built to inform the customer when they have reached 100% of the service threshold on their ‘soft cap’ product. As a result, it does not interfere with the customer’s browsing, is not a security risk, will not ‘break’ a website and poses no threat to the browser’s privacy. Telkom places the highest priority on the security and privacy of its customers.”  — © 2015 NewsCentral Media

    Robert MacLean Telkom
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email
    Previous ArticleFighting crime, with an app
    Next Article Cosatu slams Uber’s business model

    Related Posts

    South Africa’s ‘silent revolution’ as those with cash go solar

    15 August 2022

    SA coal giant Seriti Resources in pivot to renewables

    15 August 2022

    Tencent, TikTok share details of prized algorithms with Beijing

    15 August 2022
    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Promoted

    Seven reasons your business needs IP surveillance cameras

    15 August 2022

    5G your life for faster, more reliable home or mobile connectivity

    15 August 2022

    World’s fastest compact firewall for hyperscale data centres, 5G networks

    15 August 2022
    Opinion

    No reason South Africa should have a shortage of electricity: Ramaphosa

    11 July 2022

    Ntshavheni’s bias against the private sector

    8 July 2022

    South Africa can no longer rely on Eskom alone

    4 July 2022

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2022 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.