Numerous Security Cameras Have Been Turned into a Botnet by Malware

It’s not exactly news that security cameras can be hacked, but turning a bunch of them into a botnet using malware is not exactly a regular occurrence. However, that’s exactly what has happened with about 900 Linux-based CCTV cameras, which were then used to attack an unnamed “large cloud service” that is being used by millions. It looks like the people responsible for this managed to break into cameras from several brands, all of which had weak out-of-the-box security measures.

The attack itself was actually a “regular” denial of service act, which could have been prevented without too much effort. Even though security cameras are meant to make us feel more “secure”, they can actually be used by hackers to spy on us or perform attacks on important online services. I think that several companies should definitely step up their game in order to prevent their products from being compromised. However, customers should also make an effort to buy only cameras that come with adequate protection, as hackers and malware are not going away anytime soon. Securing these products would most likely be costly for manufacturers, but their brand names would gain a substantial boost in trust and popularity as a result.

What do you think about closed-circuit security cameras and their vulnerabilities?