Hackers Gain Access To Homes Through Webcams

CLEVELAND — Internet users are becoming vulnerable to hackers who can infiltrate software and gain access to webcams.

“The main thing to worry about is when software is able to turn on your camera without notifying you, without the user explicitly turning it on, that’s the main issue,” said Feross Aboukhadijeh, a student at Stanford University in California.

Via Skype, Feross told FOX 8 about his online discovery last year that criminals were able to “clickjack” – or trick – computer users into handing over control of their webcams via Adobe Flash Player. The move enabled hackers to turn on cameras and watch people without permission.

“There’s a whole underground on the internet that does this sort of stuff, so it’s basically an arms race,” said Feross. “There’s the hackers on one side trying to figure out new ways to exploit software and there’s the companies on the other side trying really hard to patch-up their software and make sure it’s not vulnerable to this type of stuff.”

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