When it comes to cyber ops, technology is often used very intelligently to accomplish espionage. But a Russian channel has now claimed that China is bugging its clothing irons so that when they are imported to Russia, they can connect to unsecured Wi-Fi networks and spread viruses.
The state-owned Russian television channel, Rossiya, recently claimed that the clothing irons imported from China are bugged. The channel claims that some of these irons come equipped with microphones and Wi-Fi connections so that they can connect to any unsecured Wi-Fi network within 650 feet. Once the irons connect to such a network, they try to spread viruses to other users connected to the same network.
This does seem a tad bit far-fetched. If indeed China intends to spy on Russia, it could do a lot better job by launching a web-based operation. We have seen Chinese hackers break into eminent US organizations and make away with critically important data in the past. Naturally, that begs the question that if Chinese hackers are so sophisticated, why not use them and rather, opt for ‘bugged clothing irons?’
The Rossiya channel, however, insists that its claims are real and that it was able to detect the bugged irons by the minor weight difference of a few grams when compared to regular, non-bugged irons. Since the channel is owned by the state, there’s no telling why is it pushing this story. State-owned channels typically do not exercise an independent editorial policy, so it is hard to believe such claims.
Courtesy: Pop Sci
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