Recently, “Podcast” is a content similar to Internet radio. Recently, Ada was invited to participate in the “The Distance Between Us and Hacks” Podcast program to talk with the host about the security issues of “Smart Home” and “Internet of Things”. “Internet of Things” should be one of the hottest terms in the past two years, and is often discussed together with 5G. In fact, the Internet of Things is the so-called “IoT”, which is also the abbreviation of the internet of things. Simply put, all Internet-connected items can be called IoT includes sweeping robots, smart TVs, network monitors, air conditioners, and air purifiers that many people now have in their homes. So, as more and more household appliances start to connect to the Internet, will there be any threats to people? This was also the main topic that the host and I discussed that day.
The distance between us and hackers: the importance of security in smart homes and the Internet of Things
At the beginning, we will discuss the security issues of the Internet of Things. In fact, you may have heard a lot in the news. The host mentioned that hackers can use vulnerabilities in the car system to remotely control the car to attack. You should still remember that in Furious 8, hackers controlled the cars in the entire city to attack the protagonist, right? Although the content is a bit exaggerated, in fact it is indeed possible for hackers to invade Internet-connected vehicles in the future. It is just that it is unlikely (or impossible) to achieve such large-scale indiscriminate control, but it is possible to affect some vehicle functions:
Of course, to be honest, most people are not celebrities or political figures, and generally speaking, hackers are not very interested in ordinary people like us. However, because it is relatively easy to invade and control, hackers have also begun to target the vulnerabilities of smart home appliances, including network cameras, smart speakers, NAS and other equipment in recent years. In addition, there are many IPcam network monitor vulnerabilities that are also commonly heard of. At the beginning of this yearXiaomi and Google Nest Hub connection bug, which resulted in the ability to view other people’s home monitors, causing Google to suspend the connection (it was immediately repaired and the service was restored):
In addition, there are groups on Telegram that collect cctv monitors on the road or at home that can be hacked (mainly because they have not changed their passwords or use lazy passwords). In fact, it is quite dangerous if they are used by interested parties to monitor people returning home at night or on roads without street lights. In addition, these DVRs are also “tools” controlled by many hackers to use for DDOS specific targets. These have been used beforeRelated reports：
There are even Ransomware hijacks smart TVs and prevents you from watching TV without paying moneyCases, and according to research, the number of brute force login attack attempts on home routers has begun to rise since October 2019. Hackers will use automated software to use common account and password combinations to attempt to log in to the router in large numbers. The number of such attacks surged from 23 million in September 2019 to 249 million in December, a number that has increased more than 10 times. According to the latest data, nearly 194 million violent login attacks were detected in March 2020, which is really difficult to prevent:
Even smart speakers contain vulnerabilities of varying degrees of risk. For example, through open ports, hackers can access user data synchronized with the speakers, or the device list and shared file folders on the same network, and can further control the speakers to play prank content. There has been a previous case where ALEXA was hacked and made a weird laugh:
Amazon’s Echo devices are randomly activating and laughing. This is creepy AF! pic.twitter.com/QzQI26s0lC https://t.co/3pPPwevSbm
— Tom Warren (@tomwarren) March 7, 2018
What’s even more frightening is that The 2018 Black Hat Hacker Annual Conference also demonstrated how to hack into a heart rate regulator, but the manufacturer stated that it would not correct it because the security risk is low (there may be no way to dig it out and correct it). There are also researchers who use smart home control devices to invade mobile phone devices in the same network environment. They can control your mobile phone calls, cameras, and read the location. Technically, to be honest, hackers in the real world can do this. It is just a question of whether they are willing and whether it is necessary:
At the Black Hat conference held in Singapore in October this year, the Singapore government proposed a very interesting policy calledCybersecurity Labelling Scheme “Network Security Labeling Mechanism” hopes that in the future all IoT devices will be marked with their security levels so that consumers can use them as a reference when purchasing. There are four security levels. The first level includes basic information security requirements. The second level requires information security to be considered during the product design stage. The third level requires software to be detected. The fourth level requires penetration testing. In the future, products that apply for this label will have some distribution fee reductions and exemptions, and this method will be used to encourage manufacturers to join. Ada personally feels that this is indeed the direction that all IoT devices can refer to in the future. He just said that the standard formulation must be clear, otherwise it will be the manufacturers themselves who have the final say:
And can such an “Internet Security Label” system be implemented in Taiwan? Will it affect consumer choice? I personally feel that if this part is standardized, of course doing it is better than doing nothing at all. But seriously, consumers will think that “information security protection” is something that relevant manufacturers “should” do well. If it is done, of course, it will increase the willingness to purchase. On the contrary, manufacturers that have not implemented relevant measures will be eliminated by the times. The key point is that consumers themselves must have sufficient awareness of Internet security. Many situations can be avoided, such as fake URLs or weak passwords. Secondly, if you are more cautious or lazy, you can of course use products such as “Smart Network Security Manager” produced by information security manufacturers as assistance tools.
Smart home appliance device information security protection
As we all know, information security protection is relatively important in large-scale enterprises. Most enterprises will use SOC (security operation center) to monitor the network within the enterprise. They will also pay attention to new vulnerabilities that have been disclosed every day, and then repair the devices affected by those vulnerabilities. Some also perform device control. For example, friends who work at TSMC are not allowed to bring mobile phones into the office and production lines. However, it is difficult for ordinary families to achieve such rigorous information security control, and they do not have the ability to implement too in-depth controls and restrictions. Therefore, if ordinary people pay attention to information security, I personally feel that it is like Trend Micro’s “Smart Internet Security Manager”, which does not require cumbersome settings or professional network security knowledge, and can achieve quite complete security protection and control for your family and all networked devices in your home.
Download the Smart Internet Security Manager APP now:http://t.rend.tw/?i=MTAwOTc, which provides free help to detect the number of connected devices in your home and check whether the devices have weaknesses or password security issues. If you think they are useful, you can decide whether to buy them later.Smart Network Security Manager Host(Purchase Smart Internet Security Manager now, enter the discount code “SP090” to enjoy a 10% discount on the Internet price, and receive a 700 yuan coupon and an Apple Watch), you can have comprehensive network protection functions.
There are more and more smart Internet-connected devices in modern homes, including computers, smart phones, tablets, game consoles, smart speakers, smart TVs, web cameras, electronic locks, smart light bulbs, and even guest Internet-connected devices. How to control them has become a big problem. The host mentioned that when the WannaCry ransomware incident occurred, the IP address of a computer that launched the attack belonged to a certain school. When the school was investigating the incident, it took the network administrator half an hour to find the locked IP. The device turned out to be a computer abandoned in the storage room. Because it was forgotten during the handover of the network management, the subsequent network management never knew the existence of this machine, and it silently became a springboard for hackers and ransomware viruses. In the recent large-scale DDOS attacks, many DVR network monitors have become zombie devices for hackers to attack others due to loopholes and lazy passwords. If there is a smart network security manager, the system will actively scan all networked devices in the home, and proactively detect whether there are related vulnerabilities and provide solutions. Taking Ada as an example, the device with the vulnerability detected by the smart network security manager in my home turned out to be a driver vulnerability in a printer. Having such a device can indeed greatly reduce the possibility of being hacked or invaded.
How to control the security of family members’ Internet devices and prevent fraudulent links?
As the saying goes, it is impossible to guard against domestic thieves. From the perspective of information security vulnerabilities, we may pay great attention to network security, but elders or children may be attracted by fraudulent websites or malicious links due to curiosity or lack of knowledge. If there is a device such as Smart Internet Security Manager, family members may accidentally click on this When there are some malicious websites, the system will also actively block them, and can even control some bad websites (such as strange dating websites, pornographic websites, etc.), and can also control their online time, and even if they are not at home, as long as their mobile phones have the Smart Internet Security Manager App installed, they can still control them.
Of course, adults like this kind of equipment very much, but children will be very “bad at gambling”. The host is also curious about whether children will secretly turn off the smart network security manager or unplug it? You don’t need to worry about this part, because the device will proactively notify the administrator as soon as it goes offline (laughs). Therefore, if ordinary people want to create a relatively safe Internet environment at home, Trend’s smart network security manager is indeed a control method that is easy to learn and very effective.
In addition, many people are accustomed to using lazy passwords. It is recommended not to use the same set of passwords. I personally suggest that you can use the URL of the corresponding website plus some numbers (such as yahoo + meaningless numbers). In this way, the password will be less likely to be seen. If it is leaked, it will be easier to know who is betraying you. XD. If it is leaked, it will be easy to change it.
If you also want to try the home vulnerability detection function of Smart Network Security Manager, you can download it for free from the App Store or Play Store to try it out. Even if you don’t buy the hardware, you can still check for vulnerabilities related to home network security. It’s not too late to buy it if you need it.
Netizen Information Security Q&A
Finally, let me share a little bit about the common questions that netizens have recently faced on the Ada fan page about smart network security butlers. If you have similar questions, take a look at these and you should be able to get the answers you want.
Q: Will installing this (Smart Internet Security Manager) affect the Internet speed at home?
A: In principle, it will not affect the network speed. Sometimes network speed changes are affected by routers or network operators.
Q: Before setting up the “Parent Protection” function, what are the precautions related to parenting?
A: The parent protection function of Smart Internet Security Manager is mainly to help parents prevent their children from excessive use of the Internet or viewing harmful content. Therefore, it is recommended that parents communicate with their children first and agree on Internet surfing standards. This is the only way to cultivate good Internet habits in their children. Because the tool is to assist children’s communication and education, rather than just using coercive means.
Q: Will there be a monthly fee? Or is it a future maintenance contract or something like that… pricing based on the number of devices?
A: 1. The product + service fee is 2,690 yuan in the first year (currently there is a 700 yuan coupon promotion and an Apple Watch). From the second year onwards, the service fee is 1,490 yuan per year, which is equivalent to an average of 124 yuan per month to protect the whole family’s network. 2. The number of devices that can be protected depends on the number of devices that can be connected to the router. You need to confirm the limit on the number of connected devices of the router you are using.
Q: If there are more than 2 sharers at home, can I just connect the Smart Network Security Manager to the Chunghwa Telecom modem, and then connect the network cable from the China Telecom modem to the other sharers to be fully protected? (Because of the floor relationship, there are multiple sharers), but they all have the same account?
A: If there is a large space in your home and you need multiple routers, you can use MESH to connect all the spaces into the same network segment, and then use the same smart network security manager to protect it.
Q: Will this conflict with the anti-virus software already installed in the computer and cause the Internet to be unable to access the Internet?
A: Smart Internet Security Manager is specifically designed to protect smart connected devices in home networks that cannot install security protection software from hackers or remote control, and prevent browsing to fraudulent websites and malicious links. However, if a virus is carried in a USB external device, memory or email, or if the device in use is not on the same home network as the Smart Security Manager, it is not within the service scope of this product. At this time, it is still recommended that you install the corresponding security software on your computer and smart mobile device to obtain the necessary protection.
Q: If a smart device uses VPN on Wi-Fi at home, will Smart Network Security Manager detect it?
A: If a VPN is set up in the device, although the Smart Internet Security Manager cannot filter VPN content, it can still provide functions such as URL classification, vulnerability scanning, application detection, time management, network notifications, and prevention of network attacks. If you have installed a protective version of the App on your phone and turned on the application detection function, you can receive alert notifications based on VPN category applications.
Q: What if the roommate directly unplugs the Smart Security Manager?
A: When the network cable of Smart Network Security Manager is unplugged, the mobile APP will pop up a notification reminder.
Q: Will this conflict with the anti-virus software already installed in the computer and cause the Internet to be unable to access the Internet?
A: Smart Internet Security Manager is specifically designed to protect smart connected devices in home networks that cannot install security protection software from hackers or remote control, and prevent browsing to fraudulent websites and malicious links. However, if a virus is carried in a USB external device, memory or email, or if the device in use is not on the same home network as the Smart Security Manager, it is not within the service scope of this product. At this time, it is still recommended that you install the corresponding security software on your computer and smart mobile device to obtain the necessary protection.
Download the Smart Internet Security Manager APP now:http://t.rend.tw/?i=MTAwOTc, which provides free help to detect the number of connected devices in your home and check whether the devices have weaknesses or password security issues. If you think they are useful, you can decide whether to buy them later.Smart Network Security Manager Host(Purchase Smart Internet Security Manager now, enter the discount code “SP090” to enjoy a 10% discount on the Internet price, and receive a 700 yuan coupon and an Apple Watch), you can have comprehensive network protection functions.
Source: KOCPC Chinese