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Technology

Hackers could use Wi-Fi to install ransomware on DSLR cameras

By Donna Lu

11 August 2019

A DSLR camera

The way cameras share data could be vulnerable

Marcus Hawkins/Digital Camera Magazine/Future via Getty Images

Digital cameras with built-in Wi-Fi let people quickly send images to other devices. But a vulnerability in the process could leave people’s cameras exposed.

Eyal Itkin at Israel-based firm Check Point found that the way cameras transfer information – the Picture Transfer Protocol (PTP) – could be exploited.

An external device, such as a laptop, uses PTP to ask the camera for pictures and other information such as battery level, and the camera responds with the requested information.

Itkin found that by sending specific requests he…

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