Can Nest Hello Be Hacked? Plus Tips to Stop Hackers!

By Trae Jacobs,

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While the Nest Hello Doorbell is one of the most secure devices on the market today, unauthorized access to the doorbell raises security concerns for homeowners. The device is great but does it leave scope for hackers to compromise your Nest Hello? Can hackers access your Nest Hello through security bugs?

Both wired and battery-powered Nest Hello Doorbell can be hacked by anyone who can control your device remotely and spy on your camera. Another common way revolves around hackers hijacking Wi-Fi traffic and stealing passwords. Without proper security in place, Nest Hello could also allow cybercriminals to infiltrate your home network.

The question is, how vulnerable is the Nest Doorbell’s security for hackers to gain access to your home network. Keep reading to know about the potential Nest Hello Doorbell’s security flaws and steps that you can take to prevent hackers.

How Secure Is the Nest Doorbell?

The Nest Hello doorbell has raised quite a bit of unwarranted fear among homeowners. Since its launch, several vulnerabilities have been identified with Nest doorbell. Because Nest Hello communicates over Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, it can be susceptible to cyber-attacks.

The security of Nest Hello can also be compromised by physical security breaches where hackers will aim to disarm the Nest doorbell’s camera sensor or the alarm.

The Nest Hello Doorbell has also been hacked in the past through firmware gaps. This hack, created by security researcher Jason Doyle in 2016, could allow hackers to create a vulnerability giving them access to the Nest Doorbell for up to 90 seconds.

But the good news is Nest’s strong resilience system rolled out security patches to safeguard Nest doorbells from such cyberattacks. Although Nest could patch the security flaws connected over the internet, Nest Hello’s security vulnerability isn’t limited to Wi-Fi attacks or firmware gaps.

The Nest Hello doorbell contains physical vulnerabilities that can be used to access the device without hacking into the network. Anyone can indeed steal your doorbell off the wall, but they won’t be able to do much with the stolen device.

A hacker can hack a battery-powered Nest doorbell in a matter of seconds without even accessing your network. For example, a hacker only needs to plug in an infected USB stick in the back of the Nest Hello’s USB port to pass malicious ransomware to control the device.

No wonder all these security loopholes of Nest doorbells sound scary, but there are sure-fire ways to safeguard the device. Continue reading below to learn how to secure your Nest Hello and prevent hackers from breaching the device.

How Do I Secure My Nest Hello?

Here are the steps you can take to safeguard your Nest Hello from hackers and intruders.

Strengthen your passwords: The safest line of defense to secure Nest Hello is to use a strong password. Avoid using the same email address and password that you use to sign in to your Nest account on other websites. Make sure to continuously change your passwords to stop credential-stuffing attacks. However, avoid opening suspicious emails or links imploring you to change the passwords.
Safeguard connected devices: Mitigate the risks by regularly updating the connected devices to the Nest Hello. If you plan to cast your Nest Hello’s footage to streaming devices, make sure to disable the guest mode. Ensure to update the Nest app and all connected devices to the Nest Hello to mitigate the risks of cyberattacks.
Protect your home network: Secure your router by keeping firmware up-to-date and with a strong password. Similarly, protect your Wi-Fi with a strong password and update it periodically. Use the security protocol as WPA2 to strengthen your home network.
Keep your Nest Hello and app updated: No matter what type of attack hackers can try to execute on your device, Google usually stays one step ahead in initiating patch updates to the app and the Nest Hello doorbell. This means if you keep your Nest doorbell and app up to date, you should have little reason to worry about hackers accessing your Nest doorbell through firmware or software vulnerabilities.
Enable 2-step verification: Add an extra layer of security by setting up 2-step verification with both Google account and Nest account.

Say you’ve done everything to secure your Nest Hello. You made sure to use strong passwords, enabled 2-step verifications, secured your network, and did everything possible to safeguard your doorbell. Yet still, hacking a smart doorbell is a breeze for some hackers. Keep reading below to learn how easy it is to hack a smart doorbell.

Can Smart Doorbells Be Hacked?

Here are some common ways hackers can breach Nest Doorbell’s security and spy on the homeowner’s property.

Executing phishing attacks to steal credentials: Even if you use a strong password, the security of your Nest Doorbell can be jeopardized by hackers stealing your password through phishing attacks. Hackers will send phishing messages, making you believe that your Google Home devices need security updates and require you to enter the password with the aim of using it to view your Hello footage or recordings.
Hacking home network/Wi-Fi router: Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) and port forwarding feature in Nest Hello Doorbell’s settings leaves it vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Hackers take advantage of UPnP and open ports to hijack Wi-Fi routers and gain access to the password.
For instance, you might want to stream your Nest Hello on Chromecast or Android TV, and whenever you stream Hello’s footage on a media player, UPnP gets turned on. Someone can cast recorded Nest Hello footage on your Chromecast via the open home network and trick you into letting in a stranger.
Hacking connected devices: Pairing your Nest doorbell to Google Home smart home devices also leaves your doorbell vulnerable for hackers to hack. For example, they can penetrate Google Assistant and use voice-command to access your recordings or watch your surroundings.
Installing malicious firmware: Hackers can gain unauthorized access to Nest Doorbell by installing malicious firmware to your home network or via USB port or by exploiting security flaws not yet publicly disclosed.
Using laser-powered voice commands: Hackers can gain access to your doorbell by using laser light commands on voice-activated Google Home devices. If you have linked your Nest Hello to a speaker, hackers can use laser-powered voice commands to display recorded footage on your TV display. One can also disarm your Nest Doorbell’s camera sensor by hitting it precisely head-on with a high beam laser pointer.

If you would like to learn more about Nest Hello, take a look at this article. Now you know everything about the security of Nest Hello.