Keep your Alexa, Siri, google home etc away from your windows. Extremely clever hack attack using lasers.

[Gromett]

Researchers in Japan and at the University of Michigan said Monday that they had found a way to take over Google Home, Amazon’s Alexa or Apple’s Siri devices from hundreds of feet away by shining laser pointers, and even flashlights, at the devices’ microphones.

In one case, they said, they opened a garage door by shining a laser beam at a voice assistant that was connected to it. They also climbed 140 feet to the top of a bell tower at the University of Michigan and successfully controlled a Google Home device on the fourth floor of an office building 230 feet away. And by focusing their lasers using a telephoto lens, they said, they were able to hijack a voice assistant more than 350 feet away.

Opening the garage door was easy, the researchers said. With the light commands, the researchers could have hijacked any digital smart systems attached to the voice-controlled assistants

Full article here.

With a Laser, Researchers Say They Can Hack Alexa, Google Home or Siri (Published 2019)

Researchers in Japan and at the University of Michigan said they have found a way to take over the voice-controlled digital assistants.

www.nytimes.com

 

[Gromett]

Telegraph has a few more details if you subscribe?

Hackers can use lasers to silently send commands to your smart speaker

Laser pointers could be used by hackers to silently 'speak' to smart speakers from hundreds of metres away without a user ever knowing.

www.telegraph.co.uk

 

[Gromett]

Tech write up here.

https://thehackernews.com/2019/11/hacking-voice-assistant-laser.html

 

[MANGOFORTH]

Do you remember the simpsons Tree House of horror Episode? The one where Pierce Brosnan is basically alexa and controls the house??

That is the reason why I will never have anything like that ?

 

[The Wino]

I don't think I'll get too worked up as all its linked to is bbc radio player and amazon music also out of line of sight from all but a plane .

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[Vipar]

Not on my Christmas list.

 

[The Wino]

Not on my Christmas list.

Really like ours we can have any music we like just by asking for it no longer have need of any cd's etc .