The curious case of a vigilante hacking IoT devices & routers but not harming anyone

Strange. Online security experts have zeroed in on to a custom-build software named Wifatch which essentially “attacks” your home WiFi, though, hold on, there’s something fishy about it. It does not carry any malware or indulge in any malicious activity.

According to researchers at Symantec, Wifatch forces WiFi router users to forcibly change their default passwords, & to close all unguarded communication channels. Vigilante? Well, experts seem to agree that this does seems like the work of a well intended hacker, though the activity is still illegal.

The custom-built software is spreading quickly across the globe, according to researchers at the cybersecurity firm Symantec.

To date, it has managed to infiltrate at least 10,000 Internet-connected devices, usually WiFi routers.

Wifatch 1st popped up last year, when an independent security researcher spotted something funky in a home WiFi router.

Is there an Internet-of-Things vigilante out there? – Symantec Blog

Oct 1,2015

The following story could well work as the script of a Hollywood movie or superhero comic.

Let me introduce you to Linux.Wifatch, one of the latest pieces of code infecting Internet of Things (IoT) devices. We first heard of Wifatch back in 2014, when an independent security researcher noticed something unusual happening on his home router. The researcher identified running processes that didn’t seem to be part of the legitimate router software and decided to investigate further. During his analysis he discovered a sophisticated piece of code that had turned his home router into a zombie connected to a peer-to-peer network of infected devices…

Tech News: Is this IoT malware acting for the greater good? – Surfmax

http://surfmax.blogspot.com Oct 2, 2015

Malware is rarely in the news for the right reasons yet a new variant may well be patching up security flaws on the Internet of Things front. First reported by Symantec, the Linux.Wifatch might be taking the fight to cyber …

IoT vigilante Linux.Wifatch ‘malware’ may be patching up security flaws – Inquirer

http://news.google.com Oct 2, 2015

SECURITY OUTFIT SYMANTEC is reporting on a thing called Linux.Wifatch that might be a good guy type of internet threat that wants to solve problems with the Internet …

A viral vigilante may be keeping an eye on your home router – CIO Australia

http://news.google.com Oct 2, 2015

An old virus affecting routers and other devices running Linux appears to be acting as a digital vigilante, protecting routers in the dark alleyways of the Internet from other…