As millions of French people prepare to go on vacation, security devices such as connected surveillance cameras can help prevent burglaries. However, a study by researchers from Queen Mary University in London and the Chinese Academy of Sciences has cast doubt on these devices.
Their conclusions are indeed surprising, they claim that these tools can provide hackers with a means of verifying whether an accommodation is occupied or not, in order to come and rob them later.
Criticisms are also addressed on the respect of the private life
Concretely, hackers could rely on the flaws of these systems. Surveillance cameras capture movements inside the home and alert the occupant who can then follow in real time what is happening at home. This model works from a Wi-Fi connection which transfers the images to the server. It is precisely this operation that can provide information to potential burglars. By monitoring network activity, they can know if a home is occupied and decide whether or not to take action.
Questioned by iNewsGareth Tyson, lecturer at Queen Mary University in London, explains: “Once considered a luxury item, these cameras are now commonplace in homes around the world. As they become more ubiquitous, it is important to continue to study their activities and the potential privacy risks ” By better understanding the dangers involved, manufacturers could better anticipate these flaws.
It is not the first time that connected surveillance cameras have been pointed at. The previous controversies were more concerned with the protection of privacy. In the United States, Amazon has notably been criticized for sharing the images collected by its Ring cameras with the police.
The tech giant also planned a feature that would automatically activate the doorbell cameras so they could record and broadcast the video to the police as soon as someone called an emergency number. Faced with the outcry of associations defending civil liberties, the firm of Jeff Bezos has chosen to abandon this project.
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By: Bitdefender
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