SEO Advice

I guess it should be no surprise that people don’t take security seriously. This doesn’t really have anything to do with SEO but I am going to share anyways because it was a small source of entertainment this Friday morning.

As reported on The Register, it is very easy to do a search on Google for unprotected web cams using queries such as:

http://www.google.com/search?q=inurl%3ACgiStart%3Fpage%3DSingle

OR

http://www.google.com/search?q=axis+inurl%3Aview%2Findex.shtml

A lot of people setting up these inexpensive cameras aren’t using the included security features to the delight of so called “video hams”.

From the Register:

IP cameras, widely available from around £70 and not to be confused with web-cams that connect directly into PCs, connect into corporate computer network or domestic broadband systems and are capable of transmitting live footage or individual images across the internet. However these systems are often set up without bothering to configure security settings (such as password protection), an omission that means nominally private cams can be viewed over the net by so-called “video hams”.

By using search engines such as Google, snoopers can locate and view hundreds of unprotected cameras, according to Robert Schifreen, IT security consultant and author of the book Defeating The Hacker. Insecure cameras can be easily located using search strings such as “inurl:CgiStart?page=Single” or “axis inurl:view/index.shtml”, to produce interesting results (as illustrated by Schifreen here).

The problem is compounded by the inclusion in many systems of so-called “PTZ” features, which allow surveillance cameras to be panned, tilted and zoomed remotely so that the operator can focus on a person or activity of particular interest. Wi-Fi versions of video surveillance cams have made it possible to install systems in a wider number of locations, further exacerbating the issue.