Montreal residents concerned after day care security camera shows up on livestreaming app

Shana Johnston had learned of the Web Camera Online app through a Facebook group. She says she first used it to explore places such as zoos and museums.

But her thoughts on the app changed drastically when she noticed the app was streaming a day care in Montreal.

“I saw the day care,” Johnston said. “I was really startled and creeped out and now I just think the app is really creepy.”

The makers of the app can access security cameras.

Something that these days is surprisingly isn’t that difficult to do.

“It’s very simple for people to gain knowledge on how to penetrate these networks or these systems,” Claude Sarrazin, a security expert, said. “A lot of products out there have got minimal security.”

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People who feel their privacy has been invaded can sue in civil court, Phil Schneider, Global News’ legal analyst, said.

However, getting someone convicted of a crime is a little more complicated.

“There is no criminal offence being committed,” Schneider said. “As strange as that may seem, people hacking into your system and streaming live movements on security cameras, you would think would be some kind of criminal offence. It’s not right now.”

Claude Sarrazin says that some security cameras are cheap and therefore easy to hack.

“There’s a huge volume of crimes being committed through the web and very little resources to enforce the laws that are there,” Sarrazin said.

For hacking to be punished more severely, authorities would have to get involved to toughen the penalties for hackers.

“It’s about time that movements were made in parliament to start dealing with the real serious problem of hacking of all kinds, of all nature,” Schneider said.

In order to stay protected from hacking, increased security is needed.

“They have to make sure they’ve got some form of encryption, some form of protection for the access to the web,” Sarrazin said.