A webcam cover in place keeps the bad guys from peeping away

Did you know someone could be watching you right now as you are reading these lines? Hackers can stalk and record you through your webcam. All they need is a malicious program snuck into your computer. But why would they do that? Usually, hackers are after fortunes and motivated by money. Blackmailing can provide them with the money, but for some hackers, fame is also a big driver. Pictures taken through the victim's webcam could be shared on forums where hackers seek approval from their peers. Sometimes it’s nothing more than a funny gag for them.

Someone could be watching you  through your webcam- it can happen to anyone

Most likely, you are wondering how can hackers watch you through your webcam? There are many ways for attackers to invade your computer so that they can peep through your webcam. We wanted to show you just how easily an attacker could watch you through your webcam. Our social engineering experts created a video to illustrate an attack.

What happened in the video? Here is our step-by-step explanation:

1. The victim plugs in a USB drive and opens an innocent-looking picture
2. The picture opens and the attacker’s commands run in the background
3. The attacker’s commands open a connection to the victim’s computer
4. A picture of the victim is taken through their webcam
5. The picture is saved on the attacker's computer

In our example, the attacker tricked the victim with a malicious file disguised as an image (this could also be a PDF or a text file). When the victim opened the picture, it started to run malicious commands on the background. The commands allow the attacker to access the victim’s computer. With a tool, the attacker can activate the victim's webcam, listen in through the microphone, and do other things on the victim’s laptop. Which means... Yikes! It’s way too easy to peep the victim and take a photo through a webcam. Are you interested in our other videos on how hackers can harm you? Our social engineers created interesting explainer videos for you.

• A Bug in G Suite Lets Attackers Spread Malware on Your Computer >>
• This Advanced Phishing Attack Using Google Subdomain Could Trick Anyone >>

Protect yourself with Hoxhunt webcam cover

We at Hoxhunt want to help you protect yourself from all kinds of attacks. This is why we designed our own cool Hoxhunt webcam covers. If you want us to send you a few of these, please send us an email at marketing (a) hoxhunt.com and we will ship you some!