Could WiFi Jamming Impact Your Smart Home Security?
May 21, 2024
I’ve written in the past about smart home security but there’s a new threat — WiFi jamming. This originally sounded to me a little like Wardriving. But WiFi jamming goes to an entirely new level.
With more than a third of North American homes protected by a WiFi video doorbell or some other WiFi-dependent device, it’s reasonable to worry about the growing threat of WiFi jammers. These devices can override your smart home security monitoring, effectively neutralizing the systems you rely on to protect your home.
These cheap and accessible jamming devices make it easier for criminals to block your security system’s primary communications signal. With that signal blocked, they can break into your home without you being notified. WiFi jamming is still fairly new but there are some things you need to know to protect your home and family.
WiFi jamming has always been possible, but it has only recently become a real-world problem, as jamming hardware devices have become cheap and widely accessible via online vendors. Amazon has come under FCC scrutiny for selling WiFi jammers, and a simple Google search reveals a long list of online vendors selling inexpensive devices that can easily block the WiFi on any device.
Also known as WiFi “deauthing,” signal jamming works on the simple principle of radio interference. By casting signals that match the WiFi radio spectrum, jammers can interfere with the entire band and prevent any nearby device from getting through. They can also target a specific device’s connection to your home network, making it harder to detect the problem. These days, most jammers work by targeting a single security device, such as a doorbell camera, and blocking its connection to the network long enough for intruders to get past it without being seen.
The prevalence of WiFi jammers is growing, and their documented use in home invasion crimes has been expanding. In fact, the Los Angeles Police Department issued a warning to LA residents in March after a series of break-ins involving jammers. In February, South American gangs were reportedly carrying out organized burglary sprees in Arizona by placing jammers in neighborhoods to initiate break-ins. The threat has become very real.
Still, even as we’re seeing news reports of jammers being used in burglaries this year, there are several good reasons to remain calm. WiFi jammers have been used in only a tiny fraction of home invasion crimes in North America to date. In fact, the overwhelming majority of home break-ins involve no electronic sophistication at all. So, while a handful of emerging reports point to the use of WiFi jammers, we’re not in the midst of a sweeping trend.
For homeowners, the question is whether the risk to their security systems is enough to justify using a fully wired security system that is immune to jamming, or whether the convenience of a wireless security system outweighs that risk. The big challenge is that most consumers probably are unaware that they are even accepting this risk when they decide on which system to purchase.
Fortunately, the simple presence of visible security systems remains a highly effective deterrent to home invasion crimes. Just by having a security system sign or cameras on the front of your house, you decrease the odds of becoming a target. Just don’t post a sign that tells a potential intruder which security system you’ve installed. That could give them clues as to how it can be defeated, as known exploits circulate within the criminal community.
A simple sign or sticker on your window to indicate the presence of an alarm can reduce the chances a burglar will target your home by as much as 50 percent. Meanwhile, 50 percent of burglars will bypass a home with cameras mounted on the front. Evidence of an alarm system is even more effective. That leaves a minority of burglars willing to brave a break-in when they see a camera in place, and most of those who do so are counting on slow police response, not WiFi signal jamming, to get away with their crimes. Everyone should understand that home security systems are merely a deterrent, and unless you can respond fast enough, a lot of damage and theft may occur before the police arrive on the scene.
Any wireless communications signal can be vulnerable to malicious interference, so it’s important to understand that this issue doesn’t only affect WiFi-based systems. Zigbee and Bluetooth signals can also be jammed, and even the cellular signals that many systems use as back-up if your broadband service goes down can be interfered with at close range.
Because real security systems are still more effective against burglaries than just a sign in the front yard as a deterrent, and because you still want as much security and visibility as you can get, it’s important to look for robust security and signal redundancy features in these products.
While all wireless signals, and even some wired signals, can be vulnerable to jamming, signal redundancy — having more than one way to communicate in case a given signal isn’t getting through — is an important capability in any security system. If you’re worried about these types of vulnerabilities, it’s recommended that you look for devices that offer a cellular backhaul capability in the event WiFi isn’t working.
Additionally, systems that use a variety of signal types in parallel are more likely to withstand a jamming attack. While the primary connection might be WiFi, sensors operating on Z-Wave or Zigbee would still be able to communicate with the hub if the WiFi is jammed. And if cellular backhaul is in place, the entire system would continue working.
You should buy brand name systems as these companies have a reputation to protect. They’re going to take security much more seriously, and they’re hiring organizations to test their products on a regular basis. They usually have better security programs. If a vulnerability is found, they patch it right away and get the information out to their user community.
In addition to actively patching discovered vulnerabilities, major home security system manufacturers like Ring and SimpliSafe also build jamming detection into their newer systems. While not foolproof, these algorithms detect telltale signs of malicious interference, adapt their own signals to prevent the jamming, and alert you to a potential attack. As jamming becomes a more common threat, you can expect to see jamming detection continue to improve and for manufacturers to advertise these features prominently.
Ultimately, wired security systems have significant advantages in reliability and robustness against attacks. If you have the budget and really want to ensure the system is working properly at all times, a professionally installed wired security system backed with 24/7 service is a better option than an off-the-shelf WiFi-based product.
I’m curious what your thoughts are around WiFi jamming and your smart home. Based on where you live, would you consider your home a potential target? Do you have a third-party security system in place or is it smart home DIY? Has the thought of WiFI jamming got you worried or reevaluating your smart home security? Do you have redundant communications methods already built into your smart home plan? If you’re new to smart home, does this article give you some guidelines that make sense to get started right.
Let Debbie and I know what you think in the comments, DMs and emails as we really enjoy hearing from you. Thanks again to all those following Debbie and I through our home building journey. It’s great to hear your success stories and suggestions as we move through the process. And if you like the content I’m posting each week, don’t forget to ‘Like’ and ‘Follow.’
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