I was disappointed to realize the snake-oil competition is a parody, because a properly-implemented version of it could teach valuable lessons to non-technical consumers.
Many products make outrageous claims about their security. Try browsing the aisles of Best Buy or any major department store. From smart-home sensors to security-cameras to anti-virus software, the shelves are stocked full with snake-oil security products advertising themselves as legitimate. These are the products that big retailers and OEM partners are marketing to the public as "secure," with much lower standards for security than any expert would assert.
To prove this to the public, what better way than a competition for benevolent security researchers to create a wolf-in-sheeps-clothing? The competition is to produce most shiny, marketable product design that looks like a "security" product, but does something far more sinister than protect its users.
Product ideas: "Anonymous router" that actually logs all traffic and sends it to a printer in the local police office; "Smart Home Hub" that performs active exploitation attacks against connected devices; "Smart TV" that actually films its users and live streams their living room to a website.
You must be looking for the Underhanded Crypto Contest: The Underhanded Crypto Contest is a competition to write or modify crypto code that appears to be secure, but actually does something evil. See https://underhandedcrypto.com/
Many products make outrageous claims about their security. Try browsing the aisles of Best Buy or any major department store. From smart-home sensors to security-cameras to anti-virus software, the shelves are stocked full with snake-oil security products advertising themselves as legitimate. These are the products that big retailers and OEM partners are marketing to the public as "secure," with much lower standards for security than any expert would assert.
To prove this to the public, what better way than a competition for benevolent security researchers to create a wolf-in-sheeps-clothing? The competition is to produce most shiny, marketable product design that looks like a "security" product, but does something far more sinister than protect its users.
Product ideas: "Anonymous router" that actually logs all traffic and sends it to a printer in the local police office; "Smart Home Hub" that performs active exploitation attacks against connected devices; "Smart TV" that actually films its users and live streams their living room to a website.
(Bonus points if they credit real products!)