Home Improvement → [Green Tech] Cyber criminals hack a REFRIGERATOR:

Cyber criminals hack homes

It was just waiting to happen. When you put your destiny out anybody can and some will take advantage.

Also being discussed in Security: »The Attacks Begin From the Internet of Things

From the looks of the posts in this forum.

That is the "I have the latest and greatest".I believe their destinies are sealed.

I never thought it would come to a point in the world where I have what is now considered a dumb fridge. It used to just be a fridge. I still don't understand the need for a smart fridge. TV or thermostat connected to a network, I can understand those. But a fridge? What benefit does that give a person?

Jack, can you clarify this?

I can understand that ne'er do wells will attack it just to see if it can be done, but I don't get the destiny reference.

Every person is in control of their destiny. They can allow others to put their lives, economic well being and security at risk or they can prevent it. It can't be prevented being connected to the internet with all these smart toys.

Evidence is Target with over 100 million credit cards compromised by a 17 year old Russian teen. There are millions of others but they aren't getting the media coverage.

Unbelievable a Refrigerator connected to the internet.

When things like this were first discussed years ago it would be the ease of getting recipes, keeping track of what was in teh fridge (and the fridge knowing what was needed for a recipe), and ultimately - automatic ordering of food from grocers (which has not really taken off yet).

Lack of that functionality has not deterred the hackers apparently.

I can keep track of what I need from the store or recipe ingredients with paper and pen or on my phone or tablet. Or in a cook book. I guess I wouldn't want my fridge ordering things for me automatically. But it's the way everything is going. It won't be long and the movie Wall-E will be a reality. A bunch of fat people in floating chairs that have everything done for them.

Yeah, I remember that explanation a few years ago. I thought I must be as dumb as my old fridge because I cook meals based on what I have to use up.

As we use it we write it down on our grocery list to buy when we go to the market. Maybe we should key it in our smart phone.....no wait can't do that, we don't have a smart phone Besides we aren't too feeble or challenged to use paper and pen.

Yep I'm a pen and paper man myself,as my wife doesn't trust my memory when I need to get stuff(and even then I manage to skip something needed and get booted back out the door again :P )

The first thing that comes to my mind is a temperature alarm that sends out alerts if it starts getting too warm.

/M

In a house full of elderly people, the greatest thing about by current fridge is the high volume 'The Door Is Ajar' alarm. I'd love it if the thing could text me.

I am definitely getting old. I may be the only person in my family with a dumb phone, it is still hard to text on it and my children have learned to call unless they want some text to be read in a week or two. I will happily keep my dumb appliances no matter what "convenient" notification I can receive from them. Post-it pads are convenient for grocery lists and I plan my meals around items I have in the house. I have a musical instrument that the first time played when my daughter was MUCH younger, she asked how to turn it off ( piano ), and have skirted around the issue of the smart TV electing just the TV alone. Oh.. and I still have a PC as opposed to other ways to get online.

You are not alone

Agreed. I was called a luddite in the thread about the "NEST" thermostats even though I provided much proof of being far more tech savvy then most even on this site because I refuse to use "smart" anything.

I'm 28, I don't own nor want a "smart" phone, "smart" TV, "smart" fridge, "smart" thermostat, "smart" security system. I don't even think my area should buy into that "smart" grid bullshit that was talked about as being a massive national security problem because I actually understand the implications of what happens when those systems are compromised.

You wanna see some real damage? Wait till somebody trips a nation wide blackout that can't be fixed till the grid devices are replaced or patched.

What about all the critical infrastructures systems, and other industries that have remote control access over the 'Net?

»www.wired.com/threatleve ··· systems/

quote:

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The hacker collective known as Anonymous has expressed interest in hacking industrial systems that control critical infrastructures, such as gas and oil pipelines, chemical plants and water and sewage treatment facilities, according to a Department of Homeland Security bulletin.

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It will happen. It's just a matter of time as more and more of our critical infrastructure is connected.

Read through the lessons learned.

»www.nerc.com/Pages/default.aspx

Anytime people think they have everything covered they are fools. It will happen and by the time they realize the threat it will be too late. The hackers are always one step ahead of the reactive victims.

"Often, they gained access because the home owners didn't set them up correctly, or used the default password."

Read more: »www.dailymail.co.uk/scie ··· qutkrQko
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I'm pretty sure all of the "hacked" devices were using the default, or very basic passwords.

What next? House robbed when owners left door unlocked?

Wouldn't have happened at all if the appliances where left as they where and not put online. A fridge is for keeping the milk fresh and the beer cold. It doesn't need the internet for that task.

Hackers are able to compromise even the best highly secured systems. Home systems with their passwords should be little problem for them. I would guess they could hit the smart meters very easily. Imagine them turning off electric service to thousands of homes.

That is the ultimate answer. Don't put this type equipment online. A thermostat is bad enough but an online Refrigerator? I guess next might be a toilet that can be flushed remotely using a smart phone app.

The scheme is not intuitively obvious. LG was caught configuring their smart TV's to advise the manufacturer and report the users viewing habits so they could sell the information.

The purpose of a smart refrigerator is to, when all products include RF ID tags, to advise the manufacturer and report what products the customer purchases. Furthermore by including a large LCD screen on the front of the refrigerator it can display advertisements. Imagine if you set a reorder point for milk and when you need milk your refrigerator begins bombarding you with advertisements for other brands of milk, other then the brand you normally purchase. Then the refrigerator can automatically email your smart phone with a shopping list. Imagine getting this message: "Time to buy milk, why don't you try Borden's this time. Display the electronic coupon at check out and save $2.00 on 1/2 gallon or more or $1.00 on 1 Quart." Coupon states: "Offer good today only."

Imagine pressing the gas cap cover release button on your cars dashboard and immediately receive a sales pitch for a brand of gas you don't normally use. Then immediately receive a message on your smart phone offering a $0.20 per gallon credit for that brand if you display the electronic coupon to the newly added scanner at the pump. Coupon states: "Offer good for two hours."

The solution is to make smart appliances configurable only by a flash drive. I just purchased a GE Cafe refrigerator with an LCD display that displays a picture of the dispenser option selected, Cubed, Crushed or Water. There is an option to load a photo slide show via a USB drive.