What is TEMPEST? And why should you be concerned about it?
TEMPEST (Telecommunications Electronics Material Protected from Emanating Spurious Transmissions) is a government term that refers to the “unintended emissions from electronic equipment”. It is an unclassified US Government code word for compromising emanations; now called Emissions Security or EMSEC.
Why Should You Be Concerned?
The U.S. Government has been concerned that these unintended emissions are actually a threat vector or vulnerability in layman’s terms. Sophisticated receivers can capture the emissions and reconstruct images and or data from these electronic devices such as laptops, monitors, cell phones, etc.
What Can You Do About It?
There are at least two solutions you can use to mitigate the threat of data loss from WiFi, Bluetooth, and IR frequencies.
You can purchase TEMPEST hardened electronic equipment designed to eliminate the unintended emissions.
Another solution is to protect the space where the equipment operates. This can be done by using architectural RF (Radio Frequency) IR (Infrared) shielding materials such as RF window film, rFoil or RF paints to attenuate the signals.
