The emergence of smart home technology has taken a disturbing turn with reports of hacked robotic vacuums invading personal privacy.
Homeowners across various states in the U.S. have raised alarms about their Ecovacs Deebot X2 robot vacuums being compromised. Users reported startling experiences where they heard garbled voices emanating from their devices and noticed their vacuums’ cameras and microphones were activated without their knowledge. In some cases, individuals remotely controlled the vacuums to shout racial slurs at unsuspecting residents.
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Affected individuals confirmed their experiences after reaching out to customer support, shining a light on serious vulnerabilities within Ecovacs’ products.
Experts have long voiced concerns regarding the security of smart devices, and in August, cybersecurity researchers identified major vulnerabilities in Ecovacs products, including their lawn mowers. These flaws could allow hackers to assume control of microphones and cameras, leading researchers to describe the company’s security as gravely lacking.
Protection features, such as audio alerts that indicate when a vacuum’s camera is active, can be deactivated with ease, raising further safety concerns.
In response to these vulnerabilities, Ecovacs stated that they do not plan to address the security issues, assuring users they need not “worry excessively.” The company has faced scrutiny in the past for security breaches that allowed unauthorized access to device cameras, raising significant alarms about the handling of user data on their cloud servers.
This troubling situation serves as a critical reminder for all smart device users to enhance their cybersecurity measures, including changing passwords for all connected devices.
Topics
Cybersecurity
Robot Vacuums
