An updated warning is now in place for individuals who employ wireless security cameras such as "Ring" for home security purposes.

Despite owning a Ring camera, a resident of Detroit was unable to obtain footage of her car being stolen from the front of her house. An expert in the local community believes that this occurrence exemplifies the advancing technological skills of criminals.

Earlier this month, the woman claimed that her car was taken from her driveway. Upon examining the footage from her Ring camera, she found that several hours were absent.

According to Chris Burns, the owner of Techie Gurus, security cameras that utilize WiFi for recording are more geared towards convenience rather than security. This is because WiFi signals are susceptible to disruptions, which can impede the camera's ability to monitor activities around your home, a weakness that criminals are taking advantage of.

Burns emphasized that relying on wireless for security is a mistake. He highlighted the fact that wireless signals are susceptible to jamming or blocking.

The offenders can make use of this as a wifi jamming gadget, or a deauther, that might come in the form of an Apple Watch.

When positioned nearby, a deauther can overwhelm a WiFi system, resulting in the interruption of recording by a WiFi camera. This accessory is reasonably priced, typically ranging from $10 to $50. Conversely, a jammer carries a higher price range, varying from $150 to $1,000.

Being highly illegal, singal jammer are not readily available, which makes them harder to come by. Nonetheless, a powerful camera jammer can halt an entire street from being monitored on WiFi security cameras with just a flick of a switch.

A statement from Ring's spokesperson pointed out that Ring device performance could be influenced by WiFi signal interference, a common issue with wifi-enabled devices. Customers struggling with connectivity problems are urged to get in touch with Ring Customer Support for help.

How can customers protect themselves?

Burns stated that for optimal security measures, it is essential to have hard-wired connections, such as being plugged into ethernet.

It was mentioned by a Ring spokesperson that they are conscious of the issue, noting its uncommon occurrence.

In light of the decreasing cost of technology, Burns pointed out that jammers are likely to become more prevalent. Thus, it is essential to prioritize the dissemination of accurate information to the public.

Feb. 16 started like any typical Friday night. My husband and I decided to stay home, grill chicken and make a salad for dinner. At about 6:45 p.m., we heard some loud rumbling overhead.

We walked onto the back patio, and two police helicopters were overhead – shining lights all over our property, and a recording echoed, "Police. You are under arrest. Stay right there and I won't shoot you."

As I looked across the fence, a swarm of armed members of the Phoenix SWAT Team with a few dogs were circling our property. One of the guys said, “Yeah, there’s a signal jammer right here.” He picked it up. I leaned over the patio and asked, “What’s going on?”

The police told me to go inside

A SWAT member said, “Ma’am, A South American gang is targeting homes to steal from. The cell phone jammer says you might have been next. Do we have permission to enter your property?” I said, “Yes!” and then he asked something like, “If we find anyone, will you pursue charges so we can arrest them?” I replied, “Of course!”

I opened the driveway gates to our property and the guest house while Barry tossed the police keys to open the security gates. It turns out that when the gang saw we were home, they likely diverted their attention to the house next door. A house four doors down from us wasn't so lucky.

The homeowner left at 5 p.m. to have dinner and got a notification his security cameras were offline at 5:05 pm. He thought the internet went down. The gang broke in and took $25,000 in cash and valuables worth $100,000. They were in and out in less than 10 minutes.

How are they getting away with this?

The gang places cellular and wifi jammer around the homes they’re targeting. This way, security cameras and phones are useless. A Phoenix police officer told me the gang probably noticed nothing was down in our house.

Our home’s security cameras and internet are hard-wired. Even when the thieves tried to jam the Wi-Fi signals, the security camera’s red lights showed they were recording everything. We also still have a landline.

But how frightening is that? Your phone doesn't work. Your cameras aren't recording anything. On the upside, the gang doesn't carry guns. If they get caught, they'll spend about six months in jail before being extradited to Chile.

If you’d like to watch the action captured by my security cameras, I showed them during a Kim Komando Today video stream. I am so thankful for our police force.

Nothing is random

The gang thoroughly scopes out homes beforehand. They drive the neighborhood and look up homes on real estate sites to get an idea of where the primary bedroom is located. They look for dogs, too.

It’s not only a problem in Phoenix. This is happening all over the country. A friend was robbed by a similar gang in a guard-gated community in California. Kudos to Phoenix Police – they arrested three members of the gang who were in my neighborhood that night.

How to stop wifi jammer attacks on home security systems

Recently, a news story originating from Queens, New York captivated audiences as it depicted a burglar smoothly gliding across the floor, clutching an unknown device. Speculation arose, suggesting that the device in question was a wifi jammer, cleverly utilized by the intruder to disrupt the home's wifi network and render the alarm system useless, thereby ensuring his undetected presence.

Is this even possible? Yes, yes it is.

So what is a wifi jammer?

Generally, these jamming devices create a signal that causes interference on the spectrums utilized by 3G, 4G, 5G, cordless, and wifi networks. Essentially, they impact all of these networks.

The excessive noise effectively hinders devices from utilizing the frequencies required for normal operation. Consequently, this interference also affects emergency networks utilized by first responders, leading to the prohibition of such devices. However, these illegal devices are manufactured and sold on the black market, and individuals have the capability to construct their own. It is advised against searching for instructions online, as it may result in being placed under surveillance.

The purpose of a jammer is to produce interference that interferes with the frequencies used by our devices, rendering them ineffective. As these frequencies propagate from the signal blocker device, they have the capability to impede a wide range of devices, even those not specifically targeted by the user.

Now that you are aware of this, do you think it could cause disruptions to your phones, alarm sensors, alarm base station, smart locks, and wifi cameras? Yes, it is a valid concern.

It is understandable if you have the following question: "Andy, my alarm system has a cellular backup in case the wifi connection fails. Will it continue to operate?" Unfortunately, that is not the case. The sensors will lose their ability to communicate with the base station due to the interference caused by these jammers. It is important to remember that these jammers not only disrupt wifi signals but also block mobile spectrums, thereby preventing your base station from making calls over wifi or a cellular network.

How To Stop Wifi Jammer and Deauth Attacks

Now that we have insight into the types of attacks and their effects, how can we effectively counteract them? Have you heeded my advice against prominently displaying the alarm company branded sign in your yard?

That is the rationale behind keeping your home security details private to prevent criminals from taking advantage of any vulnerabilities. Identifying businesses that operate on the 2.4 GHz band is a straightforward task.

When investing in new smart home technology, prioritize devices that support dual-band connectivity or operate on the 5 gigahertz spectrum. While WPA3 security is said to offer protection against such attacks, the extent of its effectiveness remains unclear to me as a beginner. Unfortunately, wireless alarm systems are currently vulnerable to jammer attacks.

You have the option to choose a conventional method by setting up a fully wired home alarm system that functions using a landline connection. As long as there are no wireless features, you should be fine.

Security Cameras With SD Card Storage

Cameras offered by companies like Ring are equipped with local storage functionality. This means that in situations where wifi is down or cloud storage is not available, these cameras utilize their internal storage to store recorded clips. Although you may not receive notifications, you can conveniently review the footage by accessing the SD card directly within the camera.

In order to enhance the security of your home, it is advisable to supplement your wifi camera system with an affordable local storage camera. This way, even if you encounter a jammer or deauth attack, you will have one camera that continues to capture footage. However, it is important to consider that if the attackers become aware of the camera's presence, they may attempt to destroy it and steal it.