Let's add another function onto the list of things the PS3 can do -- this one, however, isn't something we'd really like advertised. It's almost scary. Security-assessment.com senior security consultant Nick Breese has been using a PS3 to hack passwords and such. Apparently using a PS3 drastically increases the processing capability to do so, using the most basic of hacking tools -- brute force.
By brute force we mean it just tries every combination of numbers and letters incredibly fast. The old upper limit of vector computing using common ciphers and hash functions was around 10-15 million cycles per second, but with the PS3, this has moved to around 1.4 billion cycles per second. That's really about all we're going to dive into. If you want to read about the complex workings of the "Crackstation" project, feel free, but don't go trying this stuff at home!
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