Comment by tablespoon

> So... how would you get anything into the system that way that you couldn't get in via an actually recorded floppy?

One thing I can think of is people have done tricks with programmable storage like changing file contents after the first read (to bypass scanning). The link I posted above lists that as "7) RIT attack via USB mass storage - attack described in a research paper. It relies on changing the content of files while the USB mass storage device is connected to a victim's computer."

> it's not like usb or firewire where you have inappropriate levels of access to the system bus...

That's a good point. The main benefit of dumb media isn't so much that the storage is dumb, but that it connects to a far more restricted and inflexible interface. Though lacking a CPU does provide a smaller benefit (i.e. preventing that "RIT attack").