Hackers Have Officially Hijacked a Refrigerator, Are Entire Houses Next?

Many know that hackers are able to hijack computers to launch cyberattacks, but their abilities have moved well beyond that and now include smart home appliances, like televisions and refrigerators.

AllGov reported that "an Internet security provider, Proofpoint, Inc., says it found the first example of an Internet of Things (IoT)-based hacking scheme that included at least one fridge, as well as thousands of computers, TVs, home-networking routers and multimedia centers."

These consumer goods were responsible for sending out about 25% of the 750,000 malicious emails from hackers between Dec. 23, 2013, and Jan. 6, 2014.

Proofpoint said that this type of cyber crime will increase in the coming years, and that there will likely be "significant security implications for device owners."

"Bot-nets are already a major security concern and the emergence of thingbots may make the situation much worse," David Knight, general manager of Proofpoint's Information Security division, said. "Many of these devices are poorly protected at best and consumers have virtually no way to detect or fix infections when they do occur. Enterprises may find distributed attacks increasing as more and more of these devices come on-line and attackers find additional ways to exploit them."

The attack is being hailed as the first home appliance "botnet" attack. A botnet is a series of computers that appear to be functioning normally but are actually being remotely controlled by unidentified hackers from a different location, according to Slate.

Soon enough, many home appliances will be equipped with computer chips, software and connection to the Internet. This will open the door to hackers gaining access to any number of appliances, as evidenced by the first ever attack on a refrigerator.