# 059 - Instant Nerd Snipe

- Show: [Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast)
- Published: 2022-07-04
- Length: 1h 02m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2022-07-04-059-instant-nerd-snipe
- Listen: https://unnamedre.com/episode/59

## Summary

Mike Ryan, founder of Ice9 Consulting and a Bluetooth security expert, joins the hosts to discuss reverse engineering RF protocols and the state of software-defined radio (SDR) tools. He details his methodology for analyzing custom RF signals using tools like Inspectrum and Baudline, explains how to identify modulation types like OOK and FSK, and shares insights on hardware choices like the HackRF and Ubertooth. Ryan also discusses his upcoming open-source Bluetooth sniffer for SDRs, the challenges of virtualization on M1 Macs, and the importance of using standard protocols like BLE over custom RF for security.

## Chapters

- [0:29](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2022-07-04-059-instant-nerd-snipe#t=29) Introduction and Origin Story
- [12:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2022-07-04-059-instant-nerd-snipe#t=738) RF Reverse Engineering Methodology
- [19:13](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2022-07-04-059-instant-nerd-snipe#t=1153) Tooling: Inspectrum, Baudline, and URH
- [24:59](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2022-07-04-059-instant-nerd-snipe#t=1499) Hardware Choices and Signal Isolation
- [36:45](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2022-07-04-059-instant-nerd-snipe#t=2205) BLE, Frequency Hopping, and Security
- [48:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2022-07-04-059-instant-nerd-snipe#t=2901) Upcoming Bluetooth Sniffer and DEF CON

## Topics

- [Wireless & RF](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/wireless-and-rf)
- [Debugging & failure analysis](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/debugging-and-failure-analysis)
- [EDA & CAD tools](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/eda-and-cad-tools)
- [Microcontrollers & dev platforms](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/microcontrollers-and-platforms)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Ice9 Consulting (company)
- HackRF (tool)
- Inspectrum (tool)
- Ubertooth (tool)
- Yardstick One (tool)
- Baudline (tool)
- URH (tool)
- Wireshark (tool)
- Kismet (tool)
- NRF24 (chip)
- CC2400 (chip)
- Nordic (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [#397.6 - An Interview with Matt Knight](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-06-24-397-6-an-interview-with-matt-knight) (The Amp Hour)
- [Conning with Michael Ossmann](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-07-18-conning-with-michael-ossmann) (The Amp Hour)
- ["Impedance Matching" With Charvat And Ossmann - Recurring RF Remontados](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2014-09-03-impedance-matching-with-charvat-and-ossmann-recurring-rf-remontados) (The Amp Hour)
- [An Interview with Derek Kozel](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-02-26-an-interview-with-derek-kozel) (The Amp Hour)
- [Pedantic or Andrantic](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-01-03-pedantic-or-andrantic) (The Amp Hour)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/unnamed-reverse-engineering-podcast/2022-07-04-059-instant-nerd-snipe. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast.