Hackers Can Hijack Your House Through
Your Light Bulb, Researchers Discover
Independent (UK),
by
Anthony Cuthbertson
Original Article
Posted By: Ribicon,
2/5/2020 12:01:26 PM
Homes and businesses that use smart light bulbs are at risk of being hacked and even spied on, new research has revealed. The vulnerability, which affects the market-leading Philip Hue smart bulb, was discovered by researchers at security firm Check Point, who claim cyber criminals could use it to plant spyware or ransomware on home networks. It works by exploiting a flaw with the popular ZigBee protocol, which is commonly used within wireless networks.(Snip) The researchers informed Philips of the vulnerability, who have since issued a security patch through its website. Check Point urged owners of the light bulb to update their devices immediately.
Reply 1 - Posted by:
bamboozle 2/5/2020 12:06:28 PM (No. 308303)
Keep such IOT (internet of things) devices walled off on their own firewalled subnets. More importantly, question the idea of why we need to have such devices on the internet at all. I don't see any overwhelming need to have my lightbulbs, coffee maker, or refrigerator on the internet.
3 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
bad-hair 2/5/2020 12:07:51 PM (No. 308308)
Smart bulbs? And the Dim Bulbs that pay a lot of cash for them.
9 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
Videodrone 2/5/2020 12:25:19 PM (No. 308327)
Just say NO! to any IoT devices, no NEST, no "smart home" - your refrigerator, thermostat, coffee maker, dishwasher, washer/dryer, light bulbs - door locks none of those need to be "connected"
8 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
Avikingman 2/5/2020 12:55:15 PM (No. 308360)
FTA: "Check Point" urged owners of the light bulb to update their devices immediately.
For me at least, who the heck is Check Point?
And how would I update my devices? I never heard of them.
1 person likes this.
You will start hearing the term "Digital"... It is simply "The Internet of Things" and the aim is to connect you and everything you own to the internet. Ultimately a devise won't even need an IP address as the IP is revised and updated. I will resist to the last fibre in my being having any Digital devices in my home. I have an iMac, Mac Pro, iPads and iPhones but I also use VPN's and other methods that I won't divulge to hide my location and who I am. I am going to switch from a smart to a dumb phone soon. I don't need to search the web on my phone and I remember not even carrying a phone. That might be liberating too...we'll see! Stay off the web as much as you can. You will become enslaved to it. Don't EVER use a device to turn your lights on and off or to lock your doors and monitor your security system. You will regret it in the near future if you got suckered into it! Just got a new VW and am looking to get that unplugged. My 2014 VW cc Sport with the 3.6 monster motor along with doors that crack the window 1/4 inch when you touch the door handle to avoid slamming doors and dealing with internal air pressure...is something I'm going to keep forever! It is my favorite car of all time! And I've owned MG's and Triumphs. My
68 TR250 is worth a fortune now but I sold it in the 80's for about $1,500...who knew!!! Disconnect and free yourself!
2 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
TLCary 2/5/2020 1:39:22 PM (No. 308405)
IoT is about convenience, saving money, and playing with new gadgets. My house, (down to the world's most high tech chicken coop), is IoT everywhere. I know exactly where my horses and dogs are at a glance on my phone, (don't care about the cats or the rabbits). Not worried about the firmware because I wrote all of it myself.
I heard it said that privacy would only be available to those who can afford it... Apparently that isn't even true. Privacy is only available to those with enough tech savvy to stay under the radar or not play at all.
2 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
ladydawgfan 2/5/2020 2:28:51 PM (No. 308466)
Like OP, I, too stashed away a crapload and a half of incandescents in all wattages for future use. The closest we will ever get to a "smart bulb" is the LED bulbs my father insists on sticking in hard to reach fixtures. Otherwise, it is the good old-fashioned Edison types for THIS household!!
3 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
NYbob 2/5/2020 3:00:59 PM (No. 308518)
LOL there goes the media knowingly misrepresenting a story to shock people and con them into clicking or worse yet, buying their propaganda. Huge difference between a lightbulb and a lightbulb with bluetooth built into it's base.
2 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
zoidberg 2/5/2020 3:54:22 PM (No. 308599)
I'm lucky that all of my lightbulbs are completely moronic.
3 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
hershey 2/5/2020 4:17:45 PM (No. 308632)
Still have years worth of the old bulbs in the basement...no LED's, no twisty radium filled whatever they are, no Blink, no Alexa, no refrigerator that talks to me.....
3 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
DVC 2/5/2020 4:18:26 PM (No. 308634)
No, they can't.
I have NO "smart" items in my home beyond my computers themselves, and two cell phones. NOTHING else in connected to the internet. This is NOT a accident. I have bee a network manager and system manager on several different computer systems, different operating systems. I am very careful in selecting electronic equipment.
2 people like this.
Below, you will find ...
Most Recent Articles posted by "Ribicon"
and
Most Active Articles (last 48 hours)
Comments:
No firmware in my incandescents; I squirreled away an unpatriotic and subversive stash of them before George W. Bush and Fred Upton (R-MI) pulled them from the shelves.