Ramblings of an old Doc

 

As you all probably know, the Mirai worm caused large website failures in the recent past. Networks aren't adequately secured. Mirai turned the IoT against websites with DDoS attacks from devices all over the world.

So, 

"Here’s an object lesson on the poor state of the so-called Internet of Things: Robert Stephens plugged a Wi-Fi-connected security camera into his network and it was compromised in… 98 seconds." - Devin Coldewey

Remember, cheap webcams are just that...rarely have software updates, and have a "default password", which the hackers know. So, get a better one and change the password. But how many know how to do that? They're worried about house intruders, etc. not IoT affairs and hacks. 99% probably don't even know such a thing can be done, turning one's network into a "slave". Fewer know about the nightmarish things which can happen in a "smart home" full of "smart devices".

So you think ok, fix it...change the passwords, etc. And have anti-viral software on your system. Not much help with the antivirals...they are porous...and don't blame the users for bad browsing habits. That's just blaming the victim, because while the person might have bad browsing habits, one's computer can get infected at the best of sites, or through a host of other ways...as we all know.

The AV industry might do better putting out software which detects weaknesses in the individual and group policies and fixes them, and automatically switches the user to a guest account when browsing. The AV makers ought to stop selling magic AVs and start putting out intrusion attempt warnings, and really securing the Cloud.

Just my two cents.

Source:

https://techcrunch.com/2016/11/18/this-security-camera-was-infected-by-malware-in-98-seconds-after-it-was-plugged-in/

 


Comments
No one has commented on this article. Be the first!