Insecam website live streaming Melbourne homes, businesses from unsecured surveillance cameras

Unsuspecting Melburnians are being live streamed inside their own homes and businesses 24 hours a day “Big Brother-style” on a website dubbed the world’s biggest online cameras directory. But there’s a simple way people can keep their footage private.

Two women inside a beauty parlour in Queensland are completely unaware they are being watched.

Unsuspecting Melburnians are being live streamed inside their own homes and businesses 24 hours a day — and anyone with an internet connection is able to watch.

Homes and businesses fitted with popular brands of surveillance cameras and baby monitors are at risk of being streamed and seen by strangers through online website, Insecam.

Dubbed the world’s biggest directory of online surveillance security cameras, the site features more than 16,800 camera feeds around the world — and cyber security experts are warning its concept is no different to Big Brother.

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The cameras are available to view on Insecam because their owners have not changed the default password on their devices.

Surveillance feeds from camera brands such as Axis, Panasonic, Linksys, Sony, TPlink, Foscam and more have found their way onto the site.

There are currently 126 camera feeds available on the website around Australia — 14 from Melbourne — that show the insides of homes and businesses, people’s backyards, driveways, inside bars and what appears to be an RSL club lounge.

The Leader tracked the live streams to addresses in Pakenham, Cremorne, Mornington, Yarraville, Clayton, Mt Eliza, Morwell, Hawthorn, Port Melbourne, Elsternwick and Brunswick.

Markers on a map of Melbourne indicate where viewers can watch a live stream from a surveillance camera.

Once viewers click on a marker, a live stream of that location opens up.

Monash University cyberspace and cybercrime expert Dr Lennon Chang said Insecam was a reminder of how easily private data could fall into the wrong hands.

“It is an invasion of privacy,” he said.

“Because people can look into such a private arena they can view anything from people in their homes walking around naked to a couple making love — it’s the same concept as Big Brother.”

Dr Chang believed Insecam was a registered site in the US, but contained servers all around the world.

“It provides criminals with a good tool on how to monitor everyday behaviour — they can see who leaves a home and how many,” he said.

Insecam purports to protect individual privacy.

The website stated only filtered cameras were available — that way “none of the cameras on Insecam invade anybody’s private life”.

But the Leader spotted a camera feed from a Melbourne address, which showed an elderly man washing a car in his driveway — the registration plate in clear view.

A Melbourne car’s registration plate can be seen by anyone who visits Insecam.

Another surveillance camera showing the inside of a Melbourne pub clearly identified the faces of those working behind the bar and those having a beverage nearby.

Melbourne business owner Michael McKay said he would never consider setting up CCTV which was connected to the cloud.

“It’s quite alarming to hear about this website, but not surprising in this modern age,” the Yarrambat Park Golf Club manager said.

“It’s scary to think a modern form of security installed in the past few years poses more risks than older-style security, like hard drives.”

Dr Chang said the public needed to be more aware about flaws in cyber security.

“There should be courses available at primary and secondary school level, they don’t have to go into great detail, but young people, especially if they are growing up with this modern day technology, need to know the risks and how to mitigate them,” he said.

Dr Chang also said the site’s manufacturers should notify its customers about insecure surveillance camera feeds.

“If people don’t care then that is their choice, but they should at least be told,” he said.

“There are hacking processes involved to get these cameras broadcasted to the rest of the world and to prevent this manufacturers could have a basic mechanism in the camera to alert people about changing the password — this will reduce the misuse of default passwords.”

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