GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Wi-Fi cameras are at the top of some people's wish lists this holiday, but tech experts say you might want to rethink giving them as gifts because of one small device.
It just takes a flick of a switch, and it can make your Wi-Fi camera stop working and miss the crucial video you need. Justin Ayers, the president and founder of Grand Rapids Tech, said the illegal devices are called Wi-Fi jammers and have been around since the inception of the Internet. However, he didn't hear about them being used in crimes until around seven years ago.
"Typically, you know, you just flip a switch and it's on," Ayers said. "If there's no ability to connect to Ring servers because their connection type is down, then they're pretty useless at that point."
Both the Grand Rapids Police Department and Kent County Sheriff's Office said they have not seen any evidence or encountered Wi-Fi jammers in their jurisdictions. They also added that car thefts have been on the decline, with only 94 reports to Grand Rapids police in November, compared to 358 in September.
However, there have been several people in West Michigan who say their cameras usually pick up everything, but when they needed them most, the cameras mysteriously recorded nothing.
Carolyn Koepke and Steve Roche have lived on the northwest side of Grand Rapids in a quiet neighborhood for around five years. When they moved in, Koepke said her neighbors warned her that every five years, there were break-ins, so she decided to get Wi-Fi cameras just in case.
Her neighbors were right, when in November, Koepke said multiple cars on their street were broken into, including her sons' cars on the street and their car in the garage.
"I had no idea that this would happen," Koepke said.
When they checked their cameras, there was no recording, which Koepke said was strange.
"We see every car that drives by, every time the dog walks by the cameras, we see every delivery person, so it was very strange to have no footage in the middle of the night," Koepke said.
The couple did not report the break-ins to the police, so it cannot be confirmed if a Wi-Fi jammer was used. The devices are illegal but can be found easily online. Ayers said the best way to avoid this issue is to get wired cameras.
"Wi-Fi cameras are fine if that's your budget, but if you want to actually make sure that you can keep an eye on things, Wi-Fi jammer or not, then you want a wired camera system," Ayers said.
We reached out to Ring and Google to see if they have anything put in place to stop the jamming devices. Ring said they do not wish to comment. We are still waiting on a response from Google.
Source:
www.newsnationnow.com
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