Home automation or intelligent home control is very popular nowadays. Digitalization has finally reached our homes and it is not uncommon to find all kinds of automated appliances. Glass-ceramic cooktops, doorbells, showers… nothing escapes having WiFi connection, not even the protagonist of our story: an LG washing machine.
A user, Johnie in X, asked through the social network if it was normal for his washing machine to consume an average of 3.66 GB of data per day. Worried about the washing machine’s internet addiction, Johnie wondered if his appliance had been hacked or manipulated in some way. On the other hand, it could simply be how modern washing machines work. Either way, his questions still remain unanswered.
As a reader, you may be wondering why a washing machine needs a WiFi connection in the first place. The truth is that this particular model downloads preset wash settings for each type of clothing. However, it is doubtful that these presets would consume an average of 3.6 GB of data per day.
X users have taken out their detective magnifying glasses to find out what lies behind all this. Some indicated that the SmartThinQ appliances had a vulnerability that, despite being recently patched, could be exploited by hackers.
Why do hackers want to take control of a washing machine? The truth is that using the resources of a smart appliance to be part of a crypto mining farm or a botnet doesn’t sound too far-fetched. LG hasn’t been the only brand affected by these security flaws in their devices. Just recently, it was discovered that Bosch keys, which also connect to the network, were full of security holes.
On the other hand, there are those who point to a router error. We may never know the reason behind Johnie’s problems with his washing machine, but at least it serves us to ask ourselves the following: To what extent is it necessary for our appliances to be connected to the Internet?
Source: Tom’s Hardware
