What cyber dangers would your router be exposed to?

Today we cannot imagine our life without an internet connection. Every day and practically all the time we use it for various activities. And one of the essential devices to stay connected is the router. Unfortunately, little do they know that through this equipment we can be victims of cybercriminals.

Through routers we can establish Wi-Fi connections so millions of new devices are installed daily in homes and workplaces. Most people just plug them in and do some basic setup to get started.

However, an analysis carried out by Kaspersky, a cybersecurity company, revealed that in 2021 more than 500 vulnerabilities were discovered in routers, including 87 critical ones.

The threats affect both homes and businesses, ranging from email contamination to physical home security.

Routers can be a security threat

Since there is little awareness of the risks that a poorly configured router represents for digital securityAccording to Kaspersky, 73% of users have never thought about upgrading or securing this device, making it one of the biggest threats affecting the Internet of Things today.

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To realize the seriousness of the problem, it is enough to reflect that a router is the center of the entire home network, since all devices access the internet and exchange data through it.

Therefore, if attackers gain access to the network, they can install malware on connected computers to steal sensitive data, private photos, or files, possibly causing irreparable harm to the victim.

And not only that, Through the infected device, the criminal can also redirect users to phishing pages that masquerade as frequently used webmail or online banking sites. Any data you enter on these pages, such as username and password will be stolen by scammers. Kaspersky added that by exploiting a critical vulnerability, a cybercriminal can bypass authentication, send remote commands to another router, or take a home or business offline.

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Although the company indicates that there is an increasing awareness of this risk, Routers are still one of the most insecure devices due, among other reasons, to the fact that not all manufacturers create security patches.

Even Kaspersky warns that almost a third of critical vulnerabilities discovered in 2021 remain unanswered from vendors, while another 26% received only a comment from the manufacturer that in most cases is just a recommendation to contact technical assistance. The risk is greater considering that most consumers and small businesses do not have the experience or resources to identify a threat before it is too late.

Tips to protect your router

Kaspersky recommends

GDA / El Universal / Mexico

Source: Elcomercio

James

I have worked as a journalist for over 10 years and have written for various news outlets. I currently work as an author at 24 News Recorder, mostly covering entertainment news. I have a keen interest in the industry and enjoy writing about the latest news and gossip. I am also a member of the National Association of Journalists.