Wall Street Journal: 20 million US devices may be infected
A new Wall Street Journal report says millions of smart gadgets (think doorbells, security cameras, and tablets) have been infected with hidden malware.
According to the Digital Citizens Alliance, about 20 million devices in the US may have these hidden backdoors, as reported by WSJ.
This malware lets hackers secretly use your home internet for things like cyberattacks and spamming, all without you noticing.
Some cheap devices send suspicious traffic
The sneaky part? These infected gadgets usually work just fine, so most people don't realize anything's wrong.
Cheaper or off-brand devices are especially at risk: some start sending shady internet traffic to gambling or crypto sites minutes after being plugged in.
This is a wake-up call to be careful about what smart tech you bring home and to push for better security in these products.