South Korean police say 120,000 home cameras hacked for ‘sexual exploitation’ videos

Four people have been arrested in South Korea on suspicion of hacking into more than 120,000 cameras in homes and businesses and using the footage to create sexually exploitative material for overseas websites.

Police announced the arrests on Sunday, saying the defendants exploited vulnerabilities in Internet Protocol (IP) cameras, such as simple passwords.

IP cameras (also known as home cameras) are a cheaper alternative to CCTV that connect to the home internet and are often installed for security or to monitor the safety of children and pets.

According to reports, hacked camera locations in the country include private homes, karaoke rooms, Pilates studios and gynecologists’ clinics.

A statement issued by the South Korean National Police Agency revealed that the four suspects committed the crime independently of each other and did not collude.

One of the suspects is accused of hacking into 63,000 cameras and producing 545 sexual exploitation videos, which he then sold for virtual assets worth 35 million won ($12,235; £9,250).

Another hacker allegedly compromised 70,000 cameras and sold 648 videos worth 18 million won.

Last year, about 62% of the illegally distributed IP camera hacking videos posted on the site were produced by the two suspects.

Police are currently taking action to block and shut down the website and are working with foreign agencies to investigate its operators. They also arrested three people suspected of purchasing and viewing material through the website.

“Webcam hacking and illegal filming cause great pain to the victims and are therefore serious crimes. We will eliminate these acts through active investigation,” said Park Woo-hyun, head of the National Police Agency’s cyber investigation team.

“Watching and possessing illegally filmed video is also a serious crime so we will investigate aggressively.”

Authorities personally visited or notified victims at 58 locations to inform them of the incident and provide instructions on changing their passwords.

They also help victims remove and block content and work to identify others who may have been affected.

“Above all, it is crucial and effective for individual users who install network cameras at home or commercial premises to remain vigilant and immediately and regularly change their access passwords,” the National Police Agency said in a statement.