Communications of the ACM
Your Broadband Provider Can se Your Smart Devices to Spy on You
Internet service providers can access the data on Internet-connected devices used in the home, even when those devices are set up to protect users' privacy.
Credit: Guido Mieth/The Image Bank/Getty
Internet service providers (ISPs) can access the data on Internet-connected devices people use in their homes, even when those devices are set up to protect users' privacy.
Princeton University researchers set up a mock smart home equipped with seven Internet-connected devices to study what kind of information they reveal about their users. The researchers found four devices could be easily identified by ISPs because of the way they connected to the Internet.
The study also showed ISPs can track a user's sleep patterns by detecting when a sleep tracker was connecting to the Internet, or when a home security camera detected movement outside.
The researchers say one possible way to cut down on an ISP's surevillance capabilities involves deliberately filling a network with small amounts of traffic by running all traffic through a virtual private network and then programming it to play back that traffic even when Internet of Things devices are not in use.
From New Scientist
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