Earlier today security services company IOActive released a statement detailing potential vulnerabilities it had discovered in the popular Belkin Wemo range of remote or smart home switches.  Belkin has this evening responded to the reports with news of updates and patches that fix what it describes as potential vulnerabilities.

iOActive’s claims are complex and rather technical, however any potential unauthorised control of the Wemo switches or more worrying the sensors or cameras should be of concern to owners and users.

The IOActive release said “Mike Davis, IOActive’s principal research scientist, uncovered multiple vulnerabilities in the WeMo product set that gives attackers the ability to:

• Remotely control WeMo Home Automation attached devices over the Internet
• Perform malicious firmware updates
• Remotely monitor the devices (in some cases)
• Access an internal home network

Now personally, the worst thing that could happen to me is that some geek turns on my bedroom light while I’m sleeping, however with many people using the Belkin Wemo cameras and other sensors there is a justified concern for these remote systems.

Belkin today responded to several twitter conversations I was having with concerned users with a link to a statement outlining how the vulnerabilities had been fixed.  That statement is here and I’ve reproduced it below.  Belkin Wemo users should check this and ensure their app and device firmware is up to date.