About Can a Wyze Camera Be Hacked? The Wyze brand has made a name for itself in the security industry by developing affordable yet quality cameras.
While Wyze cameras are a decent acquisition for premises surveillance, the obvious question is, can a Wyze camera be hacked?
Here, we answer the above question, discuss how Wyze cameras get hacked, and learn ways to secure them from hackers.
Table of Contents
- Can a Wyze Camera Be Hacked?
- How Does a Wyze Cam Get Hacked?
- How to Secure Your Wyze camera against hackers
- Conclusion
Can a Wyze Camera Be Hacked?
Yes. Like any other internet device, Wyze cameras are not hackproof.
Therefore, your cameras can be hacked due to being on the internet or unauthorized access via the Wyze app.
There was a time when the Wyze lab servers were hacked in 2019. While the company announced everything was under control, the hackers still managed to steal enormous amounts of customer data.
Hackers may hack into your cameras to get the stored video footage or spy on you.
However, the good news is that you can take several steps to prevent obvious attacks.
Before we discuss these steps, let’s first see how Wyze cameras get hacked.
Security camera footage
How Does a Wyze Cam Get Hacked?
Let’s discuss some common attacks used to breach security systems.
Data Breach
Data breaches refer to unauthorized private information access, altering, copying, viewing, stealing, or transmitting.
In this type of hacking, attackers utilize complex DDOS techniques and other hacking methods to derange server functionality.
The attack at Wyze Labs in 2019 prompted the company to implement security measures.
Such measures included resetting customer authentication tokens and moving their data to Amazon AWS cloud storage which is more secure.
Typically, the company notifies you when such an attack requires you to reset your password or update your camera firmware.
Brute Force Attacks
A brute force attack is a personal-level type of hacking where attackers access your Wyze camera remotely.
Typically, hackers using this method run several combinations of password possibilities until one works.
To avoid this attack, consider using a strong password on your Wyze camera account.
I would recommend more than eight-character passwords, combining upper and lower case letters, numbers, and special characters.
Brute force attack
Credential stuffing
Just like in brute force, credential stuffing uses the password guessing method to get the correct credential for your Wyze camera.
However, in this method, they might have gotten your password somewhere. They rely on the fact that most people use the same password to secure all their log-ins.
I recommended using different and unique passwords for your online activities to negate this hacking issue.
While remembering all these passwords may seem like an upskill task, it’s a small price to pay for your security system safety.
Physically Accessing the Device
While Wyze cameras’ easy installation is a plus, it can also be a negative factor.
Suppose an intruder accesses your Wyze camera, for example, if installed on an accessible height.
It means they would easily remove and hand-reset it without a hassle or requiring your help.
After that, they can log in using their credentials; before you realize it, they have spied on your life
. To prevent this, ensure you install your cameras in hard-to-reach areas and secure them with a clamp.
Security camera installation
How to Secure Your Wyze camera against hackers
Now that we have discussed methods that attackers use to gain access to your Wyze camera, let’s see how to prevent them:
Reset Your Wyze and Network Password
As we noted, some attacks, such as brute force and credential stuffing, work when passwords are simple or common.
Therefore, ensure you reset your password to a more complex one if you suspect an intrusion. You can follow the steps below to reset the password of your Wyze camera;
- Visit the Home tab of your camera and select Account
- Once here, please scroll down to locate the Sign Out button at the bottom and click it
- While signed out, try to log into your account again, but this type, click the Forget Password link
- You will be prompted to enter your email address, where a verification code will be sent
- Enter the verification code in the resulting window and input a new strong password
- You can now exit and restart the app to refresh it
To reset your network password, follow the procedure below
- Use a PC connected to the WiFi of your router/modem. Alternatively, you can connect your network device to your PC via a USB or ethernet cable.
- Now open the browser on your PC and run the IP address of your router (found at the bottom) on the search bar.
- Input your login credentials to access the router portal
- Scroll to either security or settings, depending on the modem brand.
- Now locate reset or change password settings, insert your preferred password, and confirm it.
- Now restart the device and log in to the network by entering your new credentials.
Logging into a system
Enable Two-Factor Authentication
Two-factor authentication is another layer of security to supplement the password when trying to access your account. To enable this protocol:
- Go to Home, Account, security, two-factor Authentication.
- Then click Verification by sms.
- Now enter your phone number and click Verify Phone Number.
- Enter the code you received and click Next, and you are done.
Update Your Wyze Cam
Wyze Labs has regular updates depending on vulnerability and customer feedback to ensure more security. Therefore, you need to regularly check and update your camera firmware using the process below:
- Go to the home tab and click the account icon
- Select and open the Firmware update tab
- Identify your camera and check for the updates beside it
- If you find any, click update and wait. However, if you do not find any update, know that your camera is up to date.
Change the SSID of the Network
If you receive alerts or notice an unauthorized attempt to log into your network, I recommend changing its name.
Changing your SSID ensures hackers won’t find the network connected to your camera. You can do so with the following steps:
- While still logged into your network portal, identify and open Wireless Setup or setting
- Now find and select WiFI or Wireless SSID
- Click this SSID name to change it and log out
Switch to a Higher Encryption Level for the Network
While the above techniques can effectively secure your cameras, it’s important to take your security a notch higher. You can switch from the standard WEP or WPA to the more advanced WPA2.
If your PC is still logged into the WiFi portal, change to the advanced WPA2 encryption using the steps below:
- Locate the WiFi or Wireless setting on the network portal
- Go to security options
- Near the password-changing tile, you will find encryption settings
- Switch the encryption level to WPA2 and save
- Now restart your router, and you are done.
Conclusion
After the discussion, we have established that a Wyze camera can be hacked, so it is vital to take precautions.
You can use the discussed methods to secure your cameras from hackers.
Additionally, you can supplement the above security techniques with others, such as using a VPN and turning off sharing mode.
