Alpharetta, Georgia – On December 4th, when 8 year old Alyssa LeMay walked into her bedroom and heard strange music and sounds. She walked in expecting to find one of her sisters however her bedroom was empty.

Then, as she wandered around her bedroom the music abruptly stopped.

She then heard a strange man’s voice that said “Hello there”. This frightened Alyssa because this was not her father’s voice. Her father was in another part of the house. The voice belonged to a stranger. What became even more frightening was the fact that not only could the man speak to her but he could actually see her as well.

In a chilling exchange last week caught on video the LeMays related that the faceless strange man was able to interact with their daughter in their Mississippi home after hacking into their Ring security camera that they had recently installed in the bedroom shared by Alyssa and her two younger sisters. The man repeatedly directed an ugly racial slur at Alyssa and then tried to get Alyssa to misbehave.

Alyssa’s mother, Ashley LeMay tearfully related to a reporter at the Washington Post “I can’t even put into words how badly I feel and how badly my children feel.”

What may have been more disturbing about the incident is the fact that the LeMays aren’t the only people to experience this nightmare in the last few weeks. Numerous other Ring camera owners across the nation also reported that their Ring cameras were also hacked and compromised by criminals who harassed them through the Ring camera two-way talk function. There is no way of knowing how pervasive this problem is nationwide. Many hackers could be spying on the family members in the home without talking to them. 

In Grand Prarie, Texas, a couple was rudely awakened on Monday when a hacker took over their camera system and demanded a ransom payment.

Ring is owned by Amazon. Ring recently came out with a carefully prepared public statement basically stating that they have no evidence of an unauthorized intrusion or compromise of Ring’s system’s network.

As has been stated before in previous blogs, law enforcement experts recommend that consumers use a strong and secure password when setting up their camera systems. Never use the default password. What is even more alarming and disturbing is that Ashley LeMay stated that she made sure that she had a strong password so that was not the problem.

If you are considering on a video doorbell camera or interior camera system, American Guardian offer several alternatives to the Ring products. Additionally, as of this date there has been no report of vulnerability or hacking of these alternative camera product lines. Also unlike Ring, they do not charge you a monthly fee per camera for Cloud storage. That fee can get expensive with several cameras in operation at your home.

Again, remember, Ring has not cornered the market on Video Doorbell Cameras. There are several alternatives which are at least as good if not markedly better with no monthly fees.

For the most competitive prices on Atlanta Security Systems and Atlanta Camera Systems call American Guardian.

Ask about our exciting Holiday Offer where you can receive a Free Video Doorbell Camera with activation of an American Guardian Home Security System.

Call (770) 446-9577

 

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