Kaspersky researchers have identified several
critical
vulnerabilities in the control device for an active smart home ecosystem. These
vulnerabilities included bugs in the cloud infrastructure and potential remote
code execution flaws that would allow a third party to get ‘super user' access
to the controller and manipulate the smart home infrastructure any way they
chose. The findings were shared with the vendor, Fibaro, which addressed them
immediately and updated their security protocols accordingly.
As the
IoT landscape continues to expand and evolve, new threat dimensions emerge
through every new product and service, and it is becoming increasingly
important for security researchers to examine IoT devices through a critical
lens. A Kaspersky employee challenged the company's researchers to examine the
smart system deployed in his home. He granted the researchers access to the
smart home controller; the controller was chosen because it connects and
supervises overall operations, and a successful compromise would allow a
cyberattacker to intrude into the entire home ecosystem.
The
initial intelligence-gathering stage of research led the Kaspersky experts to
identify several potential attack vectors: via the Z-Wave wireless
communications protocol widely used for home automation; via the web interface
of the administration panel; and via the cloud infrastructure. The cloud
infrastructure was revealed to be the most effective for attack. An examination
of the methods used to process requests from the device revealed vulnerability
in the authorization process and the potential for remote code execution.
In
combination, these vulnerabilities would allow a third party to access all
backups that have been uploaded to the cloud from all Fibaro home centers lite.
They could also allow an attacker to upload infected backups to the cloud and
then download them to a particular controller - despite having no rights in the
system.
To
complete the experiment, Kaspersky experts implemented a test attack on the
controller. For this, they prepared a specific backup with a separately
developed script, protected with a password. They then sent an email and SMS to
the device's owner via the cloud, urging him to update the controller's
firmware. As requested, the ‘victim' agreed and downloaded the infected backup.
This enabled the researchers to obtain super user rights to the smart home
controller, allowing them to manipulate the connected ecosystem. To demonstrate
their successful intrusion into the system, the researchers changed the tune on
the victim's alarm clock.
"Unlike
us, a real attacker with access to the home center would be unlikely to limit
themselves to a prank with an alarm clock," said Pavel Cheremushkin, security
researcher at Kaspersky ICS CERT. "One of the main tasks of the device we
studied is the integration of all ‘smart things' so that the owner of the house
can manage them from a single home center. An important detail is that our
assessment targeted an actively deployed system - previously, most of the
research was conducted in lab conditions. The research has shown that despite a
growing awareness of IoT security, there are still issues to be addressed. Even
more importantly, the devices we studied are mass-produced and deployed in
functioning smart home networks. We thank Fibaro for its responsible attitude
to the issues, as we know they are focused on cybersecurity, and making the
home of our colleague much more secure than it was before the research."
"IoT
infrastructure requires a complicated system working fluently on many layers,"
said Krzysztof Banasiak, CPO FIBARO. "It involves lots of implemental and
architectural work. We appreciate Kaspersky's research and effort. It helped us
work on the security of our products and services. Together we eliminated
potential vulnerabilities. We highly recommend installing updates to FIBARO users,
and always checking if the e-mails are consistent with FIBARO website
announcements. The updates increase functionality of the system as well as make
it harder for hackers to steal private data."
To keep IoT devices safe, Kaspersky advises the following:
- When deciding what part of your life you're going to make a little bit
smarter, consider the security risks.
- Before buying an IoT device, search the internet for news of any
vulnerabilities with the vendor or the device.
- Along with the standard bugs often found in new products, recently
launched devices may have security issues that researchers have not yet
discovered. With this in mind, the best choice is to buy products that
have already experienced several software updates rather than the most recent
products released on the market.
- Make sure all your devices are up to date with all the latest security
and firmware updates.
- Use a security
solution like Kaspersky
Security Cloud that protects online
accounts and home Wi-Fi networks. This solution will notify the user if
any unknown devices try to connect to the network, and will automatically
alert the user of security threats with expert advice on what action to
take.
The full text of the report on
this research is available on Securelist.