South Korea busts hackers who compromised 120,000 IP cameras

South Korean police have arrested four individuals linked to the hacking of over 120,000 IP cameras installed in homes and businesses, leading to the production and sale of hundreds of illicit videos on an overseas pornography website.

The operation, uncovered by the National Office of Investigation, is one of the largest camera hacking cases in the country’s history.

The police announced on December 1 that the suspects, identified as B, C, D, and E, compromised internet-connected security cameras with weak credentials, including default or easily guessable passwords. The perpetrators collected and edited footage into sexual exploitation content, which was then sold on an illegal website hosted abroad. The scale and profitability of the operation drew particular concern, with one suspect alone earning 35 million KRW ($24k) in cryptocurrency for 545 video files.

Three of the four suspects have been taken into custody. Suspect B, an unemployed individual, is accused of hacking approximately 63,000 cameras. Suspect C, a company employee, reportedly breached around 70,000 devices and produced 648 exploitation videos. Together, their content accounted for 62% of all uploads to the foreign site in the past year. Although both profited from cryptocurrency payments, the funds had been spent by the time of arrest. Authorities have since notified the national tax office to pursue appropriate legal actions.

Suspects D and E, who hacked 15,000 and 136 cameras respectively, were found storing voyeuristic footage but had not yet distributed it. Notably, suspect D was involved in the production of child sexual exploitation material, adding further gravity to the case.

The primary distribution platform for the stolen footage hosts illegal recordings targeting victims in multiple countries. South Korean authorities are coordinating with international law enforcement to track its operators and are also investigating users who purchased or viewed the content. At least three viewers have already been arrested under laws related to sexual violence and unauthorized filming. The police have requested that the Korea Communications Standards Commission block domestic access to the website and are working with foreign partners to shut it down entirely.

The compromised IP cameras were found in locations ranging from private homes to public-facing businesses. Investigators confirmed that many of the devices had simple password configurations like repeated characters or sequential digits, leaving them vulnerable to basic brute-force attacks. Authorities are now coordinating with the Ministry of Science and ICT, telecom providers, and privacy watchdogs to notify affected users, assist with password changes, and audit large-scale video surveillance operators for signs of further compromise.

In parallel, law enforcement is offering extensive support to identified victims, including the appointment of dedicated officers, content deletion assistance, counseling, and connection to the national Digital Sex Crime Victim Support Center. The police also pledged zero tolerance for secondary abuse such as harassment or doxxing of victims, promising continuous monitoring and aggressive prosecution.