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The Internet of things (IoT) has already been used to launch the biggest DDoS attacks ever, but now it represents a potential path for attackers to compromise cell phones.
Flaws in Belkin WeMo devices - electrical switches, cameras, light bulbs, coffee makers, air purifiers, etc. – enabled Invincea Labs researchers to not only hack into the devices, but to use that access to attack an Android phone running the app that controls the WeMo devices.
"This is the first instance we've seen of IoT hacking something else," says researcher Scott Tenaglia, who pledges to look for other vulnerable devices that might be abused to carry out similar attacks.
-- submitted from IRC
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Black Hat Europe: IoT Devices Can Hack Phones
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Can anyone remember when the times were not hard, and money not scarce?
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Thursday November 03 2016, @05:19PM
I've been waiting almost a decade for the early-morning news of millions of cars stuck on the road by a hack of On-Star. Now it looks like every new shiny toy is becoming connected and therefore vulnerable to being bricked.
Keeping fingers crossed that the power grid stays on, but many people are going to have to relearn some basics the day the right people unleash a nicely written worm.
Maybe we should actually thank Google for the Android fragmentation which might protect some of us...
(Score: 2) by frojack on Thursday November 03 2016, @06:28PM
Maybe we should actually thank Google for the Android fragmentation which might protect some of us...
And maybe we should just face the fact that Apple and Android make perfect exploitable targets but IP-Lightbulbs and air purifiers don't.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Thursday November 03 2016, @06:37PM
The sheer numbers and lack of updates will eventually favor the light bulbs, if only to build the attack infrastructure (DDoS bots, but also proxies, relays, meshing in dense environment)...
Obviously, Android is a much bigger and valuable target and nowhere near as fragmented as "smart" lightbulbs, at least until OCP/E-corp achieves a monopoly.