Newest Target for Hackers: Homes and Cars

As the 'Internet of Things' spreads its tentacles into more and more of our personal objects and public spaces, experts are warning of the serious, and potentially lethal, vulnerability of networked devices to hacking.

1 minute read

August 14, 2013, 5:00 AM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


"Hackers and security researchers are moving away from simply trying to break into — or protect — people’s e-mail accounts, stealing credit cards and other dirty digital deeds," reports Nick Bilton. "Now they’re exploring vulnerabilities to break through the high-tech security of homes, cause car accidents or in some extreme cases, kill people who use implanted medical devices." 

“We haven’t figured out how to stop attacks against Web browsers in personal computers despite trying for the last 10 years, so there isn’t any reason to think that we can stop attacks against cars or other devices in the near future,” said Charlie Miller, a security researcher at Twitter. “We should be concerned and start taking action now before something bad happens. I’ll still be using my car and refrigerator in the meantime though.”


Sunday, August 11, 2013 in The New York Times

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