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3 million smart toothbrushes were just used in a DDoS attack Thread poster: Hans Lenting
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It sounds more like science fiction than reality, but Swiss newspaper Aargauer Zeitung reports that approximately three million smart toothbrushes were hijacked by hackers to launch a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack. These innocuous bathroom gadgets -- transformed into soldiers in a botnet army -- knocked out a Swiss company for several hours, costing millions of euros in damages.
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Zea_Mays 
Italy
Local time: 23:13
Member (2009)
English to German
+ ...
How did this work? Are these toothbrushes "smart" gadgets with Internet access?
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Hans Lenting
Netherlands
Member (2006)
German to Dutch
TOPIC STARTER
Zea_Mays wrote:
How did this work? Are these toothbrushes "smart" gadgets with Internet access?
Yes they are.
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Zea_Mays
Italy
Local time: 23:13
Member (2009)
English to German
+ ...
Hans Lenting wrote: Zea_Mays wrote:
How did this work? Are these toothbrushes "smart" gadgets with Internet access? Yes they are.
He he. For what purpose? Do they send plaque data to the cloud for chemical analysis?
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| That was my initial reaction ... | Feb 7 |
Zea_Mays wrote: Hans Lenting wrote: Zea_Mays wrote:
How did this work? Are these toothbrushes "smart" gadgets with Internet access? Yes they are. He he. For what purpose? Do they send plaque data to the cloud for chemical analysis?
... so I looked it up. Apparently:
"They track your brushing frequency and display both a pressure sensor and timer. Brushing frequency entails that the app tracks how often you brush your teeth. The pressure sensor in the app warns you when you put too much pressure on your teeth and gums. Thanks to this, you can prevent receding and damaged gums."
Kind of like a fitness app but for your teeth.
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| What kind of person? | Feb 8 |
Hans Lenting wrote: Zea_Mays wrote:
How did this work? Are these toothbrushes "smart" gadgets with Internet access? Yes they are.
I'm now sitting here wondering what kind of person spends their money on something like that.
Aha! I think I got it.
Christmas presents.
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For us who don't speak French, this is fake news. Fortinet made the following statement:
To clarify, the topic of toothbrushes being used for DDoS attacks was presented during an interview as an illustration of a given type of attack, and it is not based on research from Fortinet or FortiGuard Labs. It appears that due to translations the narrative on this topic has been stretched to the point where hypothetical and actual scenarios are blurred.
(emphasis added)
Source:
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/no-3-million-electric-toothbrushes-were-not-used-in-a-ddos-attack/
[Edited at 2024-02-08 08:41 GMT]
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Lingua 5B
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 23:13
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
+ ...
Philip Lees wrote: Hans Lenting wrote: Zea_Mays wrote:
How did this work? Are these toothbrushes "smart" gadgets with Internet access? Yes they are. I'm now sitting here wondering what kind of person spends their money on something like that. Aha! I think I got it. Christmas presents.
It‘s not. It‘s just an option, in a product range, for which you pay €100 extra.
Don‘t understand what‘s the app for when you have pressure and timer information on the brush itself (I have Phillips sonic brush). The only sense I see in it is that they do some data collection, testing and alike.
Like laundry machine options where you can track the progress of your wash load on a mobile app, this option costs €100 or more extra. Why? If I start a wash, I know when it will end.
Btw, what a sensationalist thread title.
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Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 22:13
Member (2008)
Italian to English
| Thank goodness mine isn't smart. | Feb 8 |
The mere thought of having to set up one of these, link it to my router, etc. fills me with sadness. Here's the waffle they use to make you think you're cool and hip and all techy and stuff:
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IrinaN
United States
Local time: 16:13
English to Russian
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How smart are those who buy into buying smart toothbrushes?
I have snake oil and oceanfront property in Arizona for them, huge discounts.
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Lingua 5B
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 23:13
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
+ ...
Impossible for the app to collect info about „how well you are brushing“. Good brushing is not only about the pressure and timing, it‘s also about the angle, hand technique, flossing, toothpaste distribution and much more. And they charge this snake oil extra, how nice. The real data they collect is consumer/ marketing data, not dental data, but hush, they won‘t tell you that.
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| This is a hypothetical scenario and did not happen | Feb 8 |
According to The Independent, this is a hypothetical scenario that was reported as factual due to translation issues (!). Quote:
Major websites could be knocked offline as a result of the attack, according to Swiss newspaper Aargauer Zeitung, who first reported the threat, resulting in millions of dollars of lost revenue.
The issue was initially reported as an actual incident, but Fortinet has since clarified to The Independent that it was a hypothetical scenario.<
... See more According to The Independent, this is a hypothetical scenario that was reported as factual due to translation issues (!). Quote:
Major websites could be knocked offline as a result of the attack, according to Swiss newspaper Aargauer Zeitung, who first reported the threat, resulting in millions of dollars of lost revenue.
The issue was initially reported as an actual incident, but Fortinet has since clarified to The Independent that it was a hypothetical scenario.
“The topic of toothbrushes being used for DDoS attacks was presented during an interview as an illustration of a given type of attack, and it is not based on research from Fortinet or FortiGuard Labs,” a spokesperson said.
“It appears that due to translations the narrative on this topic has been stretched to the point where hypothetical and actual scenarios are blurred.”
(https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/toothbrush-hack-cyber-attack-botnet-b2492018.html)
The wording of the original Swiss newspaper article's lede is indeed misleading, by not stating that the scenario, described in present tense, is hypothetical: https://www.aargauerzeitung.ch/wirtschaft/kriminalitaet-die-zahnbuersten-greifen-an-das-sind-die-aktuellen-cybergefahren-und-so-koennen-sie-sich-schuetzen-ld.2569480?reduced=true (€)
Edit: Okay, apparently Claire posted this information already yesterday in French. Well, then this is for people like me who do not speak French
[Edited at 2024-02-08 13:26 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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| All part of "Tracking" - Book recommendation | Feb 8 |
If you're wondering where these companies are going with such smart devices, I highly recommend the book The Inevitable by Kevin Kelly, published in 2016 (!).
The Inevitable is a must read for anyone trying to identify, understand, and embrace technological innovations that WILL shape our future. In optimistically identifying the 12 forces that will bring innovation and drive trends, Kelly touches on topics such as artificial intelligence, big data, robots, virtual reality and visualization.
I first read it in 2021 I believe, and I was astonished of how many of his ideas had already come to life.
Regarding smart toothbrushes, I especially recommend Chapter 10, Tracking.
In chapter 10, “Tracking,” Kelly tells us that everything in the future will be tracked. Everything that is manufactured will be connected as part of the internet of things (215). There are currently multiple streams of data that allow us to be tracked, in his words, “data is the new gold in business” (255). What does this mean for OPSEC? How can this interconnectivity be leveraged in the future? How can AI contribute to our understanding and decision making?
He very compellingly describes in this chapter how we will be tracking everything and why and for what purpose. From fitness and wellbeing to how we work. And all that data will help us to stay healthy, to make better choices, etc. pp.
I thought it was a very good book. I have reread it multiple times since.
You can find a review of sorts on Medium: https://medium.com/@mahnaz_968/a-summary-of-the-inevitable-by-kevin-kelly-aa4b2f156ac1
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Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 22:13
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Tanya Quintieri wrote:
I.... all that data will help us to stay healthy, to make better choices, etc.
We've been doing ok so far without all that cràp
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