South Korean police have arrested four people accused of hacking more than 120,000 internet-connected video cameras in homes and businesses and using the footage to produce sexually exploitative material.
The National Police Agency (NPA) said the footage was then shared on an overseas website, according to a BBC News report.
The suspects targeted Internet Protocol (IP) cameras by exploiting security weaknesses, including the use of simple passwords, authorities said on Sunday.
IP cameras, a cheaper alternative to CCTV, connect to home networks and are commonly used for security or to monitor children and pets.
Police said hacked locations included private homes, karaoke rooms, a pilates studio and a gynaecologist’s clinic.
According to an NPA statement, the four suspects “operated independently of one another, and did not conspire together”.
“IP camera hacking and illegal filming inflict immense suffering on victims and are therefore serious offences. We will eradicate them through vigorous investigations,” said Park Woo-hyun, a cyber investigation chief at the NPA.
“Viewing and possessing illegally filmed videos are also serious crimes, so we will actively investigate them.”
One suspect is accused of hacking 63,000 cameras and creating 545 sexually exploitative videos, which he allegedly sold for 35 million won ($12,235) in virtual assets.
Another allegedly breached 70,000 cameras and sold 648 videos for 18 million won.
The two suspects accounted for about 62% of all videos posted over the past year on a website that illegally distributed hacked IP-camera footage, police said.
Authorities are working to block and shut down the site and are coordinating with foreign agencies to investigate its operator. Three alleged buyers and viewers of the material have also been arrested.
Police said they have visited or notified victims at 58 locations, advising them to change passwords and helping them remove or block online content. Efforts to identify additional victims are under way.
“Above all, it is crucial and effective for individual users who have installed IP cameras in homes or business premises to remain vigilant and immediately and regularly change their access passwords,” the NPA said in a statement.
