I just watched a news video about baby monitor hackers! I have never heard of this and I started wondering if anyone else has?! It seems so crazy, & I can’t understand who would want to do this but there have been several cases of monitors being hacked. I own an old school monitor where you listen to the baby but don’t see her. For those of you like me, who might not be aware, more modern monitors use the internet to work. There’s a video camera in the baby’s room that transmits video and sound to the parent monitor or phone via the internet. Hackers are able to take control of the video camera, and move it around the room. They can even talk through the camera!
The parents interviewed in the video were terrified when they heard a man’s voice shouting “Wake Up” coming from their baby’s room. They immediately thought someone was in the house. When they ran into their baby’s room, the man’s voice was coming through the baby monitor. The hacker then moved the camera up to look at the parents and started shouting at them. I can only imagine how frightening that must have been for the parents & baby!
The video gave two tips to secure your monitor & prevent it from being hacked. First, be sure to change your user name and password from the default. Choose a complicated password that contains some symbols & numbers. And, change the password every so often. Second, keep your device updated and check the manufacturers website for any security updates. You can view the video here.
If you know anyone that has a baby monitor that uses the internet, be sure to share & advise them to make the two recommended security changes. I can’t imagine how terrifying it would be to have someone watching my child, and shouting things at them. Let me know your thoughts!
