Computer security is of the utmost importance to any technology user. Today, so many hackers exist in the world that there are even hacker conventions for hobbyists and enthusiasts interested in the “art.”
Forget your traditional computer hacking, though. Now the fear is stealing access to Wi-Fi-enabled digital cameras.
The Canon EOS ID X with built-in Wi-Fi. (Image via Canon)
Two experts, Daniel Mende and Pascal Turbing, from a German-based IT consulting firm ERNW described how they were able to hack into a Canon camera at SchmooCon 2013, a hacker convention held last month in Washington, DC.
The duo walked attendees step by step through the process of entering a Canon EOS ID X with built-in Wi-Fi. In the past, Canon cameras did not include built-in network interfaces. Instead it was an addition that needed to be purchased separately.
Built-in Ethernet is really intended for the quick transfer of images directly to the photographer’s computer, but what Mende and Turbing found was that hackers can easily access your camera.
Once they do, they can attain real, un-edited photos from your camera, can upload images onto your camera, and can turn your camera into a surveillance device, zooming in on things of interest to them and capturing high-definition photos right from their computer.
The experts shared their experience hacking into the camera while it’s in difference service modes. They needed to disconnect the connected user, which is, as they say, “easily doable.” Then, even though camera users need an authentication to access their server, it took Mende and Turbing just about 20 minutes to check the different IDs and if a user was logged in, they were able to access the exact camera screen on their web browser that the photographer was looking at.
A hacker can even take pictures on your camera right from their computer.
Hackers can access all of these functions right from their computer. (Image via Canon)
Since a camera doesn’t have the same capabilities as your computer, it can’t detect unauthorized access. This kind of camera hacking is not limited to just these cameras, but also Wi-Fi-enabled digital cameras and even smartphones.
Although Mende and Turbing hope that Canon improves their security measures, they offer some suggestions to protect you in the meantime. They recommend that you enable network functionality only in trusted networks and that you use Wi-Fi Protected Access and a secure passphrase.
It’s important to note that there have not yet been reports of camera hacking and Mende and Turbing are the first to do this.
Learn more about how Mende and Turbing hacked a Canon camera.
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