Recently there has been a large amount of webcams hacked worldwide by a group of Russian hackers and this is just the beginning of a larger problem in the market.
Hackers have compromised home webcams around the world and connected them to a live stream broadcasting on a website. Website administrators of the website have told reporters that this is aimed to make people aware of bad security practices such as failing to update your webcam’s default password.
Security experts have warned of this for years including people not changing their baby cam passwords. Hackers are aware that consumers and many small businesses do not update default passwords. Some security experts estimate that over 63% of wireless routers run with default passwords.
With more and more smart homes coming online including smart appliances and other items such as smart lights, thermostats, and many others connect to Wi-Fi, many IT consulting professionals are worried about what will happen as passwords are not changed.
The problem here is that many business have trusted employees handling their IT support services or Managed IT Services providers handling their IT security needs. Consumers and homes do not have the same IT security resources so they are leaving a much larger security breach opportunity.
So why is there concern with hacked webcams?
Simple. If hackers gain access to your webcam, your personal privacy can be shown to the public. They can also gain access to your connected light switch and to your thermostat. If they choose to play with these devices, not only is it annoying, it could be a potential fire hazard.
So how do you protect yourself? Simple, follow simple two steps.
- Change your default password.
- Use a complex password on all devices.
365 iT SOLUTIONS is a leading IT consulting firm in Toronto. We provide industry leading Managed IT Services, IT Support Services, IT Outsourcing Services, Tech Support Services and Cloud Services.
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