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I applaud you. My sister had a baby last year, and she's been posting and sharing photos and videos non-stop. Recently she asked me if I knew if hackers could

by LeonM 8y ago

I applaud you. My sister had a baby last year, and she's been posting and sharing photos and videos non-stop. Recently she asked me if I knew if hackers could break into baby monitor because she was worried some hacker may spy on her sleeping baby... I had a good laugh first, then I felt sad for her.

ianlevesque 8y ago
> I had a good laugh first, then I felt sad for her It's an issue of consent. She's voluntarily sharing specific selected photos & videos with her social peers, a hacked baby monitor would be a violation. The glib dismissal here helps nobody.
- Jaruzel 8y ago
  > It's an issue of consent. Her baby hasn't given consent. Believe you me, there's loads of 'Invasion of Privacy' lawsuits from kids to their parents coming down the pipe over the next decade.
  - balfirevic 8y ago
    That's true, but it is a separate (and valid) issue. The distinction between sharing specific photos and hacked baby monitor, as pointed out by ianlevesque, is still important and it's wrong to casually dismiss it.
  - dcole2929 8y ago
    I just saw a clip from one of those scared straight shows last night and this was my first thought. These kids are going to hit 18 and sue the everlasting hell out of anyone who had anything to do with this. Leaving aside the questionable effectiveness of those programs to begin with, all I could think was how can a parent allow their kid to be put on tv and abused in such a vulnerable position no matter how bad they are. I think it's the same for these kids who have been posted on social media by their parents. Kids get their lives ruined by this type of stuff. The internet has a long memory, and these children are in no way capable of consenting. Yeah it's not Cash Me Outside girl bad but you're still potentially putting still maturing children on display to be potentially mocked by random internet mobs. Forever.
ck425 8y ago
Hopefully you also discussed the ramifications of her sharing with her too.
- LeonM 8y ago
  I did, no worries.
caprese 8y ago
> Recently she asked me if I knew if hackers could break into baby monitor because she was worried some hacker may spy on her sleeping baby... I had a good laugh first, then I felt sad for her. and what did you tell her? "Baby" gadgets and toys are the most vulnerable. I liked the story where a teddy bear that allowed parents to leave messages was hosting recordings and replies on a public fileserver. You have to get more imaginative to think about who would take advantage of that and why, but its a valid enough answer, especially for a simply "spying" concern.
- LeonM 8y ago
  I have a background in both embedded systems engineering and pentesting. I definitely know about the weak security (or complete lack thereof) of those devices. But it's hard for non-technical people to believe that, especially if the salesman told them this camera was the 'best of the best'. So, of course I helped them to setup the IP camera in such way that they could use it securely. (VPN, strong encryption on their WiFi, etc) And of course I also explained them that they should be careful with whom they share the photos.
ThinkBad 8y ago
IIRC I believe some IOT baby monitors have been shown to have security vulnerabilities.

by LeonM 8y ago

ianlevesque 8y ago

> I had a good laugh first, then I felt sad for her It's an issue of consent. She's voluntarily sharing specific selected photos & videos with her social peers, a hacked baby monitor would be a violation. The glib dismissal here helps nobody.

Jaruzel 8y ago
> It's an issue of consent. Her baby hasn't given consent. Believe you me, there's loads of 'Invasion of Privacy' lawsuits from kids to their parents coming down the pipe over the next decade.
- balfirevic 8y ago
  That's true, but it is a separate (and valid) issue. The distinction between sharing specific photos and hacked baby monitor, as pointed out by ianlevesque, is still important and it's wrong to casually dismiss it.
- dcole2929 8y ago
  I just saw a clip from one of those scared straight shows last night and this was my first thought. These kids are going to hit 18 and sue the everlasting hell out of anyone who had anything to do with this. Leaving aside the questionable effectiveness of those programs to begin with, all I could think was how can a parent allow their kid to be put on tv and abused in such a vulnerable position no matter how bad they are. I think it's the same for these kids who have been posted on social media by their parents. Kids get their lives ruined by this type of stuff. The internet has a long memory, and these children are in no way capable of consenting. Yeah it's not Cash Me Outside girl bad but you're still potentially putting still maturing children on display to be potentially mocked by random internet mobs. Forever.

ck425 8y ago

Hopefully you also discussed the ramifications of her sharing with her too.

LeonM 8y ago
I did, no worries.

caprese 8y ago

> Recently she asked me if I knew if hackers could break into baby monitor because she was worried some hacker may spy on her sleeping baby... I had a good laugh first, then I felt sad for her. and what did you tell her? "Baby" gadgets and toys are the most vulnerable. I liked the story where a teddy bear that allowed parents to leave messages was hosting recordings and replies on a public fileserver. You have to get more imaginative to think about who would take advantage of that and why, but its a valid enough answer, especially for a simply "spying" concern.

LeonM 8y ago
I have a background in both embedded systems engineering and pentesting. I definitely know about the weak security (or complete lack thereof) of those devices. But it's hard for non-technical people to believe that, especially if the salesman told them this camera was the 'best of the best'. So, of course I helped them to setup the IP camera in such way that they could use it securely. (VPN, strong encryption on their WiFi, etc) And of course I also explained them that they should be careful with whom they share the photos.

ThinkBad 8y ago

IIRC I believe some IOT baby monitors have been shown to have security vulnerabilities.