Blog #1: To Watch the Watchers
A recent article from Newsweek titled, “To Watch the Watchers,” is a great example of how information technology impacts society. The article talks about hackers’ newfound ability to use camera-surveillance for their own purposes. This has been reported all throughout the world, but especially in Britain where there are over four million security cameras. It is estimated that the average Londoner appears on an average of 300 closed circuit television cameras per day. The problem lies within the unsecure networks that these cameras operate on. The article states that for about $80 at the local electronics store, any person with some knowledge of circuits or cameras can tap into London’s closed circuit television hotspots with only a wireless receiver. This phenomenon is now being referred to as “video-sniffing” and has been reported in Brazil and New York as well. Although this may seem like some harmless activity for a technology geek who has nothing to do on a Sunday afternoon, I feel that this is a serious security breach which could have severe consequences. It is not the actual “video-sniffing” which should concern us, even though the voyeurism in this hobby is a tad creepy, but rather the security breaches in these unsecured wireless networks. It has been reported that the sniffing has turned into a form of hacking, where the “sniffer” can actually alter the images seen on cameras rather than just watch them. You can see how this could be problematic. Some hackers have jokingly projected images from a video game onto security cameras, while others use it to watch how fast food restaurants really operate behind closed doors. The article claims that their intentions are mostly to critique the security systems and to expose the flaws to show that they are not so secure after all. These instances should be the least of our concerns, however, as I can think of two groups of people who would love to exploit this breach of security…can you? Could you think of a more perfect way for criminals and terrorists to do what they do undetected than to be able to change the images on the cameras that are supposed to be keeping the public safe? For example, think about how easy it would be to project day old images onto security cameras which would make it seem that everything is alright, when in reality a street gang is holding the entire store at gunpoint and emptying everyone’s pockets. Maybe it’s just my pessimistic nature but I can only see bad things coming from this concept of “video-sniffing.” It is important that if we want to rely on technology for security that we make sure the networks are secure. The fact that any Joe Shmo has the ability to “video-sniff” and potentially hack security cameras is unsettling for me and it should be for everyone.
1 comment:
I completely agree that the idea of outsiders hacking into security surveillance systems is extremely unsettling. I firmly believe that anything that involves keeping the safety of a community or a country should not be toyed with. In my opinion, the security circuits should be a lot more secure than described in the article. Eighty dollars and some computer knowledge is not a large price to pay to hack into a whole security circuit. It’s true that some people will hack into such a system just for fun, or to see how far they can get, but others may go a lot further than that. It is illegal to hack into anything but I think that hacking into security systems is far beyond “video-sniffing”. People can do anything with computers these days, which is why it is essential that powerful devices, such as security systems, be entirely protected from any outsider, or nothing will be safe.
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