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back to article Thermostat ransomware

Ransomware for smart thermostats and other Internet of Things devices was demonstrated at DEF CON in Las Vegas last week by security bods Andrew Tierney and Ken Munro. The Pen Test Partners pair have written up their work here if you want to see how they managed to infect a thermostat with a software nasty that demands one …

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  1. Swarthy
    Facepalm

    "The Internet of Things sucks so, so much."

    True, true.

    4 0 Reply
  2. Sureo
    Coffee/keyboard

    Pay up or you freeze (or roast) in the dark. And we'll encrypt your data for free.

    0 0 Reply
  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Oh FFS

    One day we will have a story where an IoT device actually HAS security built in before the rest of the shit they foist upon us.

    One day.

    Just not today..

    6 0 Reply
    1. Jeroen Braamhaar
      Reply Icon

      Re: Oh FFS

      You mean on April 1st ?

      1 0 Reply
    2. Mark 85
      Reply Icon
      Devil

      Re: Oh FFS

      One day... in a galaxy far, far, away and far, far, in the future. Maybe.

      1 0 Reply
  4. Sebastian A

    I know the focus in these cases is on the individual unit, but we also need to look at the greater picture. Get enough devices like this under your control and you can cause some serious issues for a power grid. Just turn everyone's heating on full at a time of low demand...

    0 0 Reply
    1. Mark 85
      Reply Icon

      I would think A/C... Set it way down. A/C's are usually pure electric (or a heat pump but still electric) where as heat is often gas. Depends on the country, I guess.

      0 0 Reply
  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Who'd Pay?

    Given these things are pretty cheap wouldn't you just disconnect it from the boiler, chuck it in the bin and get a new one?

    1 0 Reply
    1. Charles 9
      Reply Icon

      Re: Who'd Pay?

      Boilers cheap? Where? And chucking the thing may well brick the whole shebang.

      0 0 Reply

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