Keeping your home safe is important. Not only does it contain everything you own, it contains your family, and there is nothing more important to protect. That’s why we take our time to review the top home alarm system companies. We want you to feel comfortable and confident in your home knowing that if a break-in occurs, you and your family are protected. Unfortunately, keeping your family safe isn’t quite as simple as hooking up a few cameras and sensors in your home.
Burglars don’t have to enter your property to cause problems. They can hack into your home instead. Here are a few home services that can be hacked, and what you can do about it.
Home security systems and home automation
Unfortunately, the very thing that is supposed to be protecting your home can end up compromising your safety. One example is the SimpliSafe system. Due to an encryption flaw, an adept hacker can gain access to your home alarm. It can be disarmed remotely, and then the hacker or an accomplice can waltz into your home without anyone the wiser. That is, until it’s too late and they’re long gone.
It’s not just SimpliSafe. With the right know-how, a hacker can diligently work to disarm a number of systems, including home security and automation systems.
So, what can you do about it? Well, backing up your system with a landline telephone can help. Choosing a system with regular updates can help too. Homes are more susceptible to hacking than the Cloud, so go with a Cloud service. And of course, make sure you choose a password that is hard to guess.
Internet and cable
Having your internet or cable stolen seems less serious at first glance, but it can be just as devastating a compromise to your home security system. Just think about everything in your home that’s connected to the internet! As a matter of fact, your home security system is likely hooked up to the internet…
That’s some serious stuff, but there’s always the irritation factor. It’s frustrating to pay for cable or internet only to discover someone else is getting it for free because they’re hacking into your connection.
Fortunately, stopping internet hackers in their tracks is fairly easy. Keep an eye on your device list to make sure no one is picking up your internet connection. If your connection is feeling more sluggish than usual, it may also be a sign that someone is picking up your internet. If you suspect that someone is stealing your internet, change your password.
It can be more difficult to determine if someone is stealing your cable. Fortunately, it’s not a very personally harmful offense. If you suspect someone might be hacking into your cable, call the cable company to come and check things out.
Netflix and other streaming services
Hackers looking to save a little money love stealing streaming services, like Netflix and Hulu. Most of the time, these hackers will just watch shows on your account until they’re caught, but the real trouble is the fact that they have access to your account information. Whatever personal information is on your account is suddenly accessible to the hacker.
How can you tell if someone is stealing your streaming services? The easiest way to tell is by taking a look at the list of shows you’ve watched recently. See a movie or show that you’ve never watched? Well, someone did, and that someone could be a hacker.
You usually log into your account from an app, but did you know you can log into Netflix and visit their website on the internet? Once you do that, you can actually view the locations and IP addresses of the people accessing your account. If you live in New York and someone is accessing your account from Florida, you’ve been hacked. Hulu takes things one step further by allowing you to manage your devices to keep hackers at bay.
Of course, after you discover you’ve been hacked, you should change your password right away.
Be vigilant and know you aren’t alone
Nearly everyone experiences a hack at one time or another. Fortunately, companies are getting better and better at creating technologies that are nearly impossible to be hacked, but the keyword there is ‘nearly’. We’ll probably always be chasing after hackers, but the more diligent you are, the quicker you can stop them in their tracks, ultimately keeping you and your family safer.