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posted by martyb on Tuesday February 19 2019, @01:59PM   Printer-friendly
from the build-a-[fire]-wall! dept.

Sex robots could be hijacked by hackers and used to cause harm or even kill people, a cybersecurity expert has warned.

Artificial intelligence researchers have consistently warned of the security risks posed by internet-connected robots, with hundreds recently calling on governments to ban weaponized robots.

The latest warning comes from a cybersecurity expert who made the prophecy to several U.K. newspapers.

“Hackers can hack into a robot or a robotic device and have full control of the connections, arms, legs and other attached tools like in some cases knives or welding devices,” Nicholas Patterson, a cybersecurity lecturer at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia, told the Star.

“Often these robots can be upwards of 200 pounds and very strong. Once a robot is hacked, the hacker has full control and can issue instructions to the robot. The last thing you want is for a hacker to have control over one of these robots. Once hacked they could absolutely be used to perform physical actions for an advantageous scenario or to cause damage.”

https://www.newsweek.com/hacked-sex-robots-could-murder-people-767386

[Yes, the story is "clickbait-y", but the underlying point still remains that remote access to IoT (Internet of Things) devices could wreak havoc. Do any Soylentils have IoT devices and what, if anything, have you done to provide protection from undesired monitoring or tampering? --Ed.]


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  • (Score: 2) by RandomFactor on Tuesday February 19 2019, @02:50PM (3 children)

    by RandomFactor (3682) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday February 19 2019, @02:50PM (#803471) Journal

    Currently no IoT stuffs.

    I do own an Echo Dot, but it hasn't been powered on in a year.

    There's a few things on my horizon maybe (camera/doorbell of some sort, maybe a smart thermostat) but those are just idle thoughts that haven't been acted upon.

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  • (Score: 1) by Sulla on Tuesday February 19 2019, @04:47PM (1 child)

    by Sulla (5173) on Tuesday February 19 2019, @04:47PM (#803530) Journal

    I had a Samsung Smart TV for a while, but the kids broke it and went back to a dumb TV

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    • (Score: 2) by RandomFactor on Tuesday February 19 2019, @10:11PM

      by RandomFactor (3682) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday February 19 2019, @10:11PM (#803700) Journal

      Aww crap, good point, the TV is IoT isn't it. Dammit.

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 19 2019, @10:35PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday February 19 2019, @10:35PM (#803714)

    Get an Ecobee 3 lite. You can see interesting graphs about your thermostat use and some states give you money for buying one. In MA I got $125, which covered most of the cost.