Page 46 of The Smart Killer
“You were saying?’
“Right. Um. With Lakeridge homes, the appliances and devices can all be controlled remotely using a mobile or networked device like a laptop. For the most part, you can set and forget these, or like some of Lakeridge’s equipment, you can customize it. The system caters to room temperature, lighting, music, messages, locks, and everything in the home can be adjusted according to a person’s profile. The thing is, anyone can override those settings if they can gain access. The more smart devices a home has, the greater chance that they can be hacked into.”
“And Lakeridge has everything,”
“Exactly. They are leading the way. All their equipment is made in-house. No third-party products. That’s why I wanted to work for them. Michael Taylor is a visionary. His ideas and vision of the future keep expanding, and homeowners are on the cutting edge of that technology. However, despite that, he can’t control what people do inside their homes. Like gun manufacturers. It might come with a warning and instructions on safety, but you can’t be sure people will follow it or won’t modify the weapon.”
“Did you ever see modification?”
“Some. It was usually minor but enough to cause issues. When the system stopped working, I would be called to fix it. I would then have to caution them not to make changes.”
Noah nodded as Alejandro continued eating.
“So, this wardriving and hacking into the system. How’s it done?”
“It’s not easy without access to the accounts. Chances are, if these deaths resulted from someone taking over the smart home system, the person may work for the company.”
“Another tech, like yourself.”
“Exactly. Beyond that, I would consider those who live in the gated communities as they are less liable to stand out because they belong there. No one would bat an eye if someone were walking their dog near a house or driving by a home because the road leads away from their own. However, that’s not to say it’s not someone from the outside that visits weekly — a letter carrier, a garbage collector, plumber, a close friend or family member.” He took a few gulps of his drink.
“Okay, then what?”
“It would be easier for me to show you, but…”
“You can’t be anywhere near their homes.”
“Right. Look, the way it works is like this. Let’s say it’s a regular neighborhood. You drive by homes slowly until you see one using a smart camera. Ring. Nest. I mean, with Lakeridge, all the homes have smart cameras inside and out, so you don’t have to worry about that part. The next step would be to find out the IP address so you can hack it. But how do you do that? If they can dig through your garbage, they might find something that has your phone number or email and then use that to phish for it. Most of the time, you can find that on an invoice or a bill. But let’s say that fails. Most folks using one smart device oftenuse two or more. Lighting, for instance, is a common one. Now, if they throw out a bulb and someone gets their hands on that…”
“They’re in business,” Noah said.
“Somewhat. It doesn’t work all the time, but yeah, a surprising amount of information gets stored on them — SSID, the Wi-Fi password. So even if there is a strong password on the Wi-Fi and encryption, a person could still gain access to the home. Now, having said that, there are other ways to do it. Often, just browsing networks can reveal a Wi-Fi name identifiable by something related to the home — a name, a number, the street, even their license plate. Now, if they have weak encryption, it’s not a matter of if I could get it, only when.”
“Okay, so you are inside; what now?”
“Well, I would just need to find the camera system once in. And that’s as simple as using a few commands that can map out their entire network of hard-wired and Wi-Fi devices and show me any open ports and devices that could be attacked. From there, I just punch the IP associated with that device into a web browser, and if it doesn’t let me in, it might provide the type of system they are using. From there, I can learn a little about the device from the company website or Google. That will often give you the default admin password, and I’m in.”
Noah could see the excitement in his eyes, like a serial killer looking at photos of past victims, or an addict describing the process of making meth. Despite the years that had passed, he still hadn’t lost that high that came from finding a backdoor into a home’s video feeds.
“And from that they could control?”
“Everything the user could. You want that coffee to start brewing at 7 a.m. Done. You want it to turn off the stove if you left it on or turn it on to preheat the oven on your way home from work. Done. It’s all accessible at the click of a button or through voice commands. You want it to monitor the temperature in thehouse and adjust to how hot or cold it is outside; that can be done too.”
“What about a leak. Gas poisoning?”
“If no leak was found. Valves can be opened and closed easily enough, dials turned, and switches turned on gas stoves but without a spark. There are ways. You could flood a house with water nowadays with smart toilets that are set to sense the right amount of water for flushing. Hackers could flush it repeatedly or even let water flow from the bidet. If they wanted to know the house’s layout, they could use the smart vacuum cleaner to map it out and then unlock the doors and gain entry.” He continued listing off different areas of the home.
Noah’s mind spun through the possibilities.
Alejandro stuffed a fork into the last piece of steak on his plate. He paused, looking contemplative. “Though, I would be looking at someone inside the company. That’s a lot of work for someone on the outside.” With that said, he took the morsel of steak and devoured it just as Porter slumped down next to Noah.
“What did I miss?” he asked.
14
“Stay with me. Stay with me, kid,” an older man said, administering CPR.
In the heart of the Adirondacks, beneath a sky splashed with stars, an eerie silence settled over High Peaks. The streetlights cast long shadows across the deserted road, interrupted only by the flickering blue and red glow of an ambulance approaching. The wail of its siren grew louder as the ambulance bounced up the curb and swerved into the parking lot outside Downhill Apartments. It screeched to a halt near a dumpster.
