US EditionMan Tries to Control His Robot Vacuum with PS5 Controller, Accidentally Takes over 7,000 of Them
- An AI strategist showed to The Verge that an AI coding tool accidentally gained control of roughly 6,700 DJI vacuum devices across 24 countries, including access to live video and metadata.
- A playful experiment to use a game controller led Azdoufal to buy a Romo and use Claude Code to reverse-engineer its cloud authentication, exposing nearly 7,000 vacuums.
- Live video, audio and device metadata were accessible, allowing Azdoufal to steer robots, view onboard cameras, retrieve floorplans and battery levels, and bypass device PINs with a 14-digit code.
- Shortly after being told, DJI closed the loophole, issued automatic patches, and said only a few users exploited the flaw while end users need no action.
- The episode underscores growing concern over smart-home privacy, highlighting risks in Chinese-made DJI devices and showing U.S.-hosted data can be accessed remotely from Spain.
17 Articles
17 Articles
DJI Romo Robot Vacuum Security Flaw Exposes Thousands
A tech enthusiast accidentally uncovered a major security flaw affecting thousands of internet-connected robot vacuums, gaining access to detailed floor plans, live camera feeds, and audio streams. The discovery has renewed concerns about foreign-built smart devices operating inside American homes. The company involved says it has implemented fixes, but additional vulnerabilities reportedly remain. According to reporting by Tom’s Hardware, Sammy…
Tinkerer Gains Access to 7K Robot Vacuums
A French software engineer tinkering with his $2,000 robot vacuum wound up with the virtual keys to thousands of other people's homes. Sammy Azdoufal tells the Verge he was trying to figure out how to control his DJI Romo vacuum with a video game controller as a fun experiment....
Sammy Azdoufal only wanted to control his vacuum cleaner robot with a game console controller. Then he discovered a safety leak from the manufacturer – and looked into more than 7,000 living rooms worldwide.
Man accidentally gains command of 7,000 robot vacuums
A software engineer's earnest effort to steer his new DJI robot vacuum with a video game controller inadvertently granted him a sneak peak into thousands of people's homes. While building his own remote-control app, Sammy Azdoufal reportedly used an AI coding assistant to help reverse-engineer how the robot communicated with DJI's remote cloud servers. But he soon discovered that the same credentials that allowed him to see and control his own d…
Man accidentally vibe codes a robovac army
The DJI Romo is a $2000 behemoth that mops and vacuums using LIDAR and AI. Sammy Azdoufal ended up controlling thousands of them when all he wanted to do was drive his robovac with a game controller. Azdoufal, who is not a hacker by trade, used Claude Code to develop a method to connect his homegrown app to DJI so he could use his PlayStation controller with his Romo. — Read the rest The post Man accidentally vibe codes a robovac army appeared f…
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 46% of the sources lean Right
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
