The FBI is advising users of consumer-grade routers and network-attached storage devices to reboot them as soon as possible to counter Russian-engineered malware that has infected hundreds of thousands devices (see FBI tells router users to reboot now to kill malware infecting 500k devices | Ars Technica ). My PEPWAVE Surf SOHO is not listed there but it’s possible that that list of endangered routers is not complete.
Does this malware affect the PEPWAVE Surf SOHO and, if so, what action should be taken (I have already re-booted) ?
Technically its impossible to tell as yet since the initial attack vector is unknown.
The suggestion is that the consumer grade devices were likely targeted as there were well known exploits documented online for these models.
Reboot your device and make sure you are running the latest firmware. Peplink has no outstanding security exploits / advisories.
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Good advice Martin, but this situation really does warrant a response from PepLink staff.
Thanks for these responses. Rapid, succinct, comprehensible, candid (“Technically its impossible to tell as yet …”). All in contrast to the “support” I have experienced from vendors of big name “consumer grade” routers (“Thank you for your query. We have passed it to our XYZ department which will answer in due course. When replying to this mail please quote the following number…”).
By the way, passing the “reboot your router” advice to friends and acquaintances I discovered that almost no-one knew how to reboot their router. In fact the majority didn’t even know where their routers are (“Is it that thing with flashing lights in the basement ?”). So I just told them it was almost certainly the thing with flashing lights in the basement, just pull the plug, wait 30 seconds, plug it in again, and if the furnace and heating system have stopped working just look around for other things with flashing lights.
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