Smart TV Broadcast signals are being used to launch cyber attacks which enable hackers to spy on people with the TVs camera and microphone. The attack also offers the hackers a potential to access several TVs at once without the need of any physical tampering. So, a single attack on home a smart TV can affect several smart televisions in the vicinity.
Security consultant Rafael Scheel revealed some astonishing facts related to this hack to Daily Mail. And he detailed that embedded malicious commands can be induced into a smart TV with the help of just a cheap transmitter.
Mr. Scheel claimed that this simple hack allows control over devices including the use of its camera and microphone for activities related to espionage. And in one of his lines stated to Daily Mail, Mr. Scheel said that the infection can survive numerous reboots and factory resets.
“The way hackers are hitting the Smart TV owners with sophistication is a matter of high concern”, said Mr. Scheel who demonstrated the hack at a cybersecurity conference held last month at the European Broadcasting Union in Le Grand Saconnex, Switzerland.
While Scheel used Samsung televisions for demonstration, he said that users of Sony and LG were also at risk.
Many TVs in Europe use digital video broadcasting signals and so they are vulnerable to such attacks. Mr. Scheel exploited this flaw in his demonstration and targeted internet browsers used by the TVs.
A simple firmware update could block the attack on smart TVs but are the manufactures interested in doing so….?
Note- As per a study launched by Google Chromecast, around 79% of television watchers in the UK use connected TVs to view content. The development is fuelled by the wider offering and the intensive use of on-demand video content. The survey also confirmed that 78% of all smart TVs were bought in last two years and are primarily being used as a family entertainment device with an average of 2.7 persons watching –mainly during prime time.
