South Korea Shaken as Hackers Breach 1.20 Lakh CCTV Cameras, Record and Sell Private Videos Online

In a shocking revelation, South Korean authorities have uncovered a massive cybercrime operation in which hackers infiltrated more than 1.20 lakh CCTV cameras installed in homes and commercial establishments. The hackers exploited a simple mistake made by users — weak passwords, especially on low-cost IP cameras commonly used for home security, childcare monitoring and pet surveillance.

According to a BBC report, these hacked cameras included those installed in homes, Pilates studios, and even the clinic of a female doctor. Once inside the systems, the hackers secretly recorded private and obscene videos and later sold them on an overseas website.

Police have arrested four individuals, all of whom carried out their hacking activities independently. One suspect alone compromised nearly 63,000 cameras, creating 545 explicit videos and earning around 3.5 million Korean won (approx. ₹10 lakh). Another managed to hack 70,000 cameras, selling 648 videos for about 1.8 million won. Police said that nearly 62% of all videos uploaded to the foreign website in the past year were produced by these two offenders.

Authorities have also detained three individuals who were found purchasing and viewing the illegal content.

South Korean police are now coordinating with international agencies to shut down the foreign website involved in the sale and distribution of these videos. Police official Park Woo-hyun stated, “Hacking cameras and secretly recording victims causes deep psychological harm. This is a serious crime, and we will eradicate it completely. Viewing or possessing such illegal content is also a punishable offence.”

How Users Can Protect Their CCTV Cameras

To prevent similar incidents, cybersecurity experts advise users to adopt strong security practices:

• Always set a strong and unique password for IP cameras.
• Avoid using default factory passwords.
• Update camera software regularly.
• Change passwords every 30 days.
• Be cautious when choosing camera placement; avoid bedrooms and bathrooms.
• If a breach is suspected, immediately change the password and report to the police.