Pwnagotchi: the open source gadget for WiFi pwning!
Remember the Tamagotchi?
Simone Margaritelli/Evilsocket created the Pwnagotchi, a mix between a game from the 90s and a wardriving tool, with a touch of machine learning.
Pwnagotchi is a DIY, open source gadget running on a Raspberry Pi Zero W for hacking Wi-Fi that gets smarter the more networks it gets exposed to using a machine learning process called deep reinforcement learning.
The idea is for its user to take it around the city and "feed" it with Wi-Fi handshakes:
Keep in mind: Unlike the usual RL simulations, Pwnagotchi learns over time. Time for a Pwnagotchi is measured in epochs; a single epoch can last from a few seconds to minutes, depending on how many access points and client stations are visible. Do not expect your Pwnagotchi to perform amazingly well at the very beginning, as it will be exploring several combinations of key parameters to determine ideal adjustments for pwning the particular environment you are exposing it to during its beginning epochs ... but ** listen to your Pwnagotchi when it tells you it's boring!** Bring it into novel WiFi environments with you and have it observe new networks and capture new handshakes—and you'll see. :)
It also has an adorable interface that reflects different "moods" depending on what it's doing, like the Tamagotchi digital pets of the 90s:
In case you're curious about the name: Pwnagotchi (ポウナゴッチ) is a portmanteau of pwn and -gotchi. It is a nostalgic reference made in homage to a very popular children's toy from the 1990s called the Tamagotchi. The Tamagotchi (たまごっち, derived from tamago (たまご) "egg" + uotchi (ウオッチ) "watch") is a cultural touchstone for many Millennial hackers as a formative electronic toy from our collective childhoods.
Were you lucky enough to possess a Tamagotchi as a kid? Well, with your Pwnagotchi, you too can enjoy the nostalgic delight of being strangely emotionally attached to a handheld automata yet again! Except, this time around...you get to #HackThePlanet. >:D
Evilsocket released the hardware technical details on the project website, and the software on GitHub.