ScamBusters: Hackers exploit victims with webcam devices
It’s a scary, pervasive scam that’s growing worldwide: scammers are hacking into computer webcams to get information to use against you.
Imagine you’ve been quietly sitting at home working on your laptop for hours, but little do you know a hacker is spying on you.
“It’s scary and happens more than you think,” said Brad Knauer, a cybersecurity specialist who works for Think Green Computers in Colorado Springs.
“About every other day I see someone who’s been scammed,” he said.
How it works
It typically starts with pop-up ads alerting that your computer is infected. A sound may come on to increase the urgency to get help, but it’s all fake.
“Some of the ads may look legitimate coming from Apple offering some sort of tech support,” said Knauer.
It gets tricky if you actually click on any part of the ad, which will take you to a site or lead you to another pop-up.
“You can give complete access to your computer in a single click,” Knauer said.
If you click on the wrong button, malicious software can be downloaded on your device without any signs of it. Hackers will take control of the device, sell your information, or worse: spy on you.
“It won’t turn on the webcam light so you might not even know the device is on,” he said.
It’s not just laptop cameras, it can be any camera device that connects to the internet. Such as a Ring doorbell camera, a baby monitor, an iPhone, etc.
It happened to Jamie Summitt as she was breastfeeding her son.
“Who knows what sort of videos are out there of both of us,” Summitt said.
What can you do?
“The best way to prevent this is to put a piece of tape over your webcam,” said Knauer.
The truth is there are no sure-fire signs to indicate a hacker is spying on you, but you can regularly change your passwords and have your computer checked out professionally once a month.
If you need help generating passwords, use the LastPass site which will aggregate the letters and numbers for you.
Report a scam
Email me at: Stephanie.Sierra@KRDO.com
