Zombies infest your home. They are invisible and don’t bother you but they wreak havoc elsewhere. That sounds far fetched but it is just what happened last Friday when some of the most important sites on the web, including Airbnb, Netflix, Reddit, Spotify and Twitter, were in large part knocked offline by a crime machine that exploits basic security flaws in devices such as internet-enabled cameras, thermostats and other household appliances.
These gadgets are cheap and convenient. The cameras allow us to create our own CCTV, keeping an eye out at home when we are away. The thermostats allow us to turn the heating on remotely (and to see if the teenagers are keeping the house too warm). Internet-enabled fridges tell us if we are