Turn off the 'Bluetooth' option on your smartphone or laptop

Turn off the 'Bluetooth' option on your smartphone or laptop if not needed. If you keep Bluetooth on all the time, your device may be hacked. Cybersecurity experts warn that those who keep Bluetooth on their smartphones or laptops all the time should give up that habit. This is because there is a security flaw in the Bluetooth protocol, which can be exploited by cybercriminals to hack into important information or hack the device.

A team of academics has unveiled a new vulnerability to the Bluetooth wireless communication protocol that has led to a pseudo-attack on various devices such as smartphones, laptops, and smart-home devices (Bluetooth Impersonation).
Devices that have previously been 'paired' with Bluetooth can be exploited by cybercriminals to take advantage of Bluetooth vulnerabilities. Bluetooth devices that currently support Bluetooth Basic Rate (BR) or Enhanced Data Rate (EDR) Core Configuration 5.2 or higher are at risk. Usually a link key has to be 'paired' to establish an encrypted connection between the two devices.


Experts say you need to have an updated Bluetooth configuration to protect yourself from such attacks. Otherwise device manufacturers will have to wait until the firmware update. As long as the firmware is not being updated, the Bluetooth option should be turned off without the need to pair it with another device for protection.

According to the Cyber ​​Emergency Response Team of India, cybercriminals can hide their identities through Bluetooth before entering the device. Miscreants can take full access to the device by exploiting the weakness of Bluetooth.

So, Turn off the 'Bluetooth' option on your smartphone or laptop  when you don,t need to use