Fraudsters Invade Home Privacy Through Counterfeit Cameras
The UAE government's Cybersecurity Council warned individuals of fraudulent attempts to target home child-monitoring devices, citing that while these devices are important and necessary for many households, their ease of securing could help turn them into easy-to-hack devices by scammers.
As part of its awareness campaigns, the council called on families to follow preventive advice and guidelines to enhance children's privacy and protect the home from cyber breaches.
Home security cameras are generally a way for families to protect their homes from theft, as some use them, especially when parents are out of the house for work-related reasons.
These devices are tools that allow parents to remotely monitor their children's affairs, including audio-only devices, video devices with screens that provide vision and sound, often monitored via a smartphone app, and these devices feature features such as voice or motion alerts, two-way audio communication.
The Cyber Security Council warned that a child monitor is vulnerable to hacking, as it may allow fraudsters to talk to them, record conversations and movements inside the home, advise using strong passwords, and constantly update the system, ensuring the home becomes a smart, safe home for parents and children.
For his part, cybersecurity expert Sami A Nour told Emarat Al Youm that "there are several forms of privacy violations of internet-connected home surveillance cameras, and they can be hacked by neighbors by hacking into the network or hacking remotely".
He added: "If these cameras are not password protected, they can be accessed from anywhere in the world, by anyone, even if there are hackers and criminals who leak the addresses of these cameras and exchange them with each other, and they can be tracked, so password protection is necessary".
He pointed to a second thing, which is the virtual password, because there are a lot of people who install the camera without changing the virtual password, which in many companies is fixed on all devices, and it's accessible.
Warn that the risk of choosing a weak password, which can be easily guessed, such as a phone number, frequent numbers or common names, must be to use a strong password, as using a weak password makes accessing the camera a matter of time.
He stressed the importance of maintaining a high level of security and privacy, explaining that the security of the device itself is very important, and there are several simulators, especially programmatically, and this is where the householder should realize the importance of this.
On how people can protect themselves from hackers who may sneak into their homes via these devices, Sami A Nour stressed that they should stay away from counterfeit devices, which lack global security and privacy credentials, pointing out that investing in original cameras can be expensive, but safe, and constantly updated.
Cyber expert Sami A Nour warned that one of the scammers might contact the user to pretend he's from the official camera repair company, and in fact access the camera, record it, and then blackmail him.
He pointed out that leakage of home cameras no longer occurs in secret and on the dark web, as unfortunately, leaked home videos are now being circulated in public places, thus becoming more prevalent.
The Cyber Security Council warned earlier of an increase in cyberattacks targeting smart homes, explaining that 70% of IoT devices used inside these homes are vulnerable to cyberattacks if the necessary digital security measures are not taken.
Holes in the control systems .
Information security researchers have uncovered several flaws in some home camera control systems, and that the most prominent security risks associated with connecting surveillance cameras to the Internet cannot be ignored, and that in the case of homes there is a possibility that control systems will be exposed to unexpected hacking, allowing attackers to hack into them, as well as controlling home devices, such as alarm systems, locks, and online imaging.
Experts discovered the absence of any kind of documentation or encryption of data transferred between cameras and smart home devices on the one hand and remote controls (mobile phones or the Internet) on the other, and hackers could easily pinpoint the location of online surveillance cameras, their IP address on the network, the area where the home is located, and the nearest major city to the home, and researchers were able to link these homes online to their actual location. And thus knowing its geographical address.
Experts at these systems manufacturers have recommended that these systems be developed to achieve the desired level of security amid a growing cyberattack.
Proposal to ban the entry of bad and fake cameras.
Cyber expert Sami A Nour has said that competent authorities are preventing poor paternity surveillance cameras from entering the state, or issuing a rating card, pointing out that we now have energy rating cards in electrical and automotive applications, from the highest to the least consumed and most highly regulated.
I also suggest that there be an approved rating within the state that assesses the security and privacy of the devices, so that the user knows what's next, but not exploit the profitable sellers at the expense of family protection.
Source: Emarat Al Youm