BrickerBot: Putting Security and Convenience at Risk

blue hallway with icons on walls and man in suit at the endTechnology makes it easier than ever to monitor your business when you’re not around. You can view live video feeds from surveillance cameras, set your building’s internal temperature, even turn off the lights when the closing crew forgets.

It also makes your business more vulnerable to a web-based attack. And the newest threat targeting that vulnerability is called BrickerBot.

BrickerBot is a worm that targets alarm systems, video surveillance equipment, thermostats and other systems connected to the internet. These systems and devices are designed to make running your business more convenient.

This convenience, however, is also what makes them a prime target for hackers. BrickerBot gets into these systems, corrupts their storage capabilities and causes them to become completely unusable—or bricked, meaning “as useless as a brick” (hence the worm’s name)—leaving your business without security surveillance or other essential systems.

In private homes, BrickerBot can also affect consumer products like baby monitors, electronic toys and even household appliances (you might have seen the new refrigerators equipped with cameras, so you can check the contents while you’re at the grocery store).

What Can You Do?

If you have an internet-connected system or device and it came with a default username and password, don’t use it. If your business uses a router, make sure it doesn’t have a universal plug and play feature (this allows your devices to automatically connect to the internet); if it does, disable that feature. Using a good firewall between your computers and the internet can also go a long way in mitigating this risk.

If you would like more information on protecting your business from these and other threats, contact the James Moore Technology Solutions Consulting team at 1-800-455-5676.