De Martino case: More and more video cameras are being hacked: here's how to protect yourself.
A large number of heterogeneous devices and services (e.g., surveillance cameras, Internet of Things, industrial routers, etc.) are exposed insecurely on the internet, as recent news reports demonstrate. The latest case involves the unauthorized dissemination of private videos purportedly depicting showman Stefano De Martino and his partner Caroline Tronelli. The footage was allegedly stolen via the video surveillance system at the woman's home and subsequently uploaded to a foreign website—which was later removed—and then circulated on messaging and social media platforms, including WhatsApp and Telegram, where it was shared numerous times.
In particular, systems are frequently made accessible directly from the public network without adequate protection measures. This is highlighted by the National Cybersecurity Agency, which has published a series of recommendations for mitigating the risk.
Here are the Agency's suggestions for the home environment.
- Change the default credentials on routers, cameras, and other devices.
- Avoid using default configurations by customizing ports, users, network names, and security settings.
- Use multi-factor authentication whenever available.
- Use strong, unique passwords for each device (at least 12 characters, uppercase, lowercase, letters, numbers, special characters).
- Update your device firmware regularly, enabling automatic updates when available.
- Disable UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) on your router, which can automatically expose services to the Internet.
- Restrict remote access: Disable remote control unless absolutely necessary. - Isolate Internet of Things devices on a guest network, separating them from PCs, smartphones, and personal devices.
- Monitor router activity: check for open connections and anomalous traffic, via the control panel or app. - Use secure DNS to filter unwanted content and improve security.
- Configure your router's firewall to block unauthorized incoming connections.
- Use remote access securely, avoiding opening ports on your router/firewall for services like RDP, VNC, or SSH; instead, use dedicated VPN solutions to access your home network.
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