Restart Radio: Connected device horrors
After our recent "Remote Kill Switch" episode, we have been collecting connected device horror stories. Only a couple of weeks ago, a bunch of CC TV cameras, routers, and video recorders nearly took down the internet. We talked about this "botnet" - and how some really crap, mundane devices were taken over remotely and used in a cyberattack. Other stories, care of the "Internet of Shit" tweet, amused us but were less global in dimension. Including the British geek who spent 11 hours configuring his smart kettle. Eleven hours for a cup of tea! We recalled the hacking of "Hello Barbie" - a connected toy that could be hijacked remotely. And probably the best wrap-up and summary of how we can create our own horrors, was Terence Eden's talk at Thingmonk called "The (Connected) House of Horrors". We played back his top tips, which start with: don't do it! Don't connect everything! And then, if you must, don't buy unsupported crap.