About WLAN and monitoring..

[Michael Holstein]

> I run a Tor client on a laptop at easy to access pub wifi access 
> points. What I need to know is, assuming I have disallowed file 
> sharing, ect what info could a wifi host be able to access on my 
> computer? I have heard they could only log my MAC address, the unique 
> code identifying my wifi card. Is more available to an attacker?

The MAC of the wireless card (which can be changed .. from the advanced 
properties tab in Windows, or 'ifconfig hw ether' in *nix).
The hostname sent to the DHCP server (also modifiable)

Just turning off file sharing does not disable all the exposed ports .. 
run "netstat -an |findstr LISTEN" to see what's open (replace 'findstr' 
with 'grep' for *nix).

Also : consider things like Windows Update, Weatherbug, Webshots, 
AntiVirus progs, etc. All of those apps send a unique ID to the remote 
side, and could be used to associate the "non-TOR-you" with the 
"TOR-you". So could your web-based email if you've EVER used it from an 
identifiable location.

Cheers,

Michael Holstein CISSP GCIA
Cleveland State University