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Kaspersky combats DDoS attacks with new IoT security software

Published on: 4 Sep 2017

Free software aimed at improving the security of ‘smart’ home and Internet of Things (IoT) devices has just been released by Kaspersky Lab.

The Android-based Kaspersky IoT Scanner scans a home Wi-Fi network and reports on the level of security for any connected devices.

More than six billion IoT devices are currently being used worldwide, and as the DDoS attacks orchestrated by the Mirai botnet in October 2016 demonstrated, many of them can be easily manipulated by cybercriminals. Google announced just this week that almost 300 apps have been removed from its Play Store after it emerged the apps were being hijacked for DDoS attacks.

The IoT Scanner can notify the user when any new or familiar device joins or disconnects from the network. This means people can be aware of who is accessing their home network, and encourages IoT users to think about the security risks of their smart home devices.

Andrei Mochola, head of consumer business at Kaspersky Lab, commented: “[Our] mission is to save the world from cyber threats. We offer many free solutions for a variety of tasks and platforms, and Kaspersky IoT Scanner is another solution that allows a significant portion of netizens – namely, users of smart devices – to stay protected.”

The solution is available for beta testing in Google Play in certain countries.