Detection of ultrasonic side channels in mobile devices with Python?

[Steven D'Aprano]

On Thu, 01 Mar 2018 08:54:52 +1100, Chris Angelico wrote:

> But this part sounds like prime quality tinfoil hat material:
> 
>> Tell me how exactly ultrasonic side channels may activate remotely
>> specific neural pathways implicated in aggressivity and how to block
>> theses specific side channels from neuromodulating human behavior.


I wouldn't entirely rule it out. (On the other hand, I wouldn't give it 
much credence in the absence of solid evidence either.) I'm too lazy to 
google it right now, but I recall that there's definitely evidence for 
inaudible *subsonic* frequencies being able to affect human emotions, 
mostly to induce feelings of disquiet and nameless dread.

I recall a panel of US scientists in the 1980s trying to work out how to 
protect long-lived nuclear waste from inquisitive humans for periods of 
many millions of years. Obviously Keep Out signs aren't going to do the 
job, so one of the ideas they were tossing around was to surround the 
area in artificial rock carved into shapes which would generate the 
appropriate subsonic frequencies when the wind blew.

Of course it is only a matter of time before malware, spyware, adware and 
hostile-national-security-ware[1] takes advantage of ultrasonic side 
channels to screw us over however they can. Including the US government. 
But I think the idea that the mobile phone manufacturers *intentionally* 
built phones with this capability in order to give the US government the 
ability to weaponise people's phones against them is sheer nuttiness.



[1] In the current political climate, I think it is safe to say that 
nearly all national security ware is hostile, and every one of us are the 
targets.

-- 
Steve