Robots with inadequate security could be hacked and cause physical harm or be used to spy on unsuspecting owners in the near future . Researchers at IOActive Labs released a report Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability Wednesday warning that consumer , industrial and service robots in use today have serious security vulnerabilities making them easy targets for hackers or accidental breaches . In a review of 10 robots , which ranged from home , business , and industrial , IOActive said Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability the risks ranged from insecure communications , authentication issues , weak cryptography and missing authorization . Cesar Cerrudo , CTO of IOActive Labs , said robots suffer from many of the same security shortcomings of as IoT , medical devices , smart cars and plush toys . “ We found Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability nearly 50 cybersecurity vulnerabilities in the robot ecosystem components , many of which were common problems , ” according to the IOActive Labs report Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability . As part of its investigation , IOActive analyzed some robot hardware as well as robot ecosystems . Some of the robots examined included SoftBank Robotics ’ NAO and Pepper robots , UBTECH Robotics ’ Alpha 1S and Alpha 2 robots and Rethink Robotics ’ Baxter and Sawyer robots . Underlying issues within the robots studied for the report , Cerrudo said Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability , included weak default configurations , a big security problem responsible for privacy breaches and DDoS attacks in other internet-connected devices . “ We found Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability robots with insecure features that couldn ’ t be easily disabled or protected , as well as features with default passwords that were either difficult to change or could not be changed at all , ” according to the report . In a closer examination of the robot ecosystems , IOActive Labs said Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability many of the robot platforms it analyzed Vulnerability-related.DiscoverVulnerability use open source frameworks and libraries that suffer from known vulnerabilities such as cleartext communication , authentication issues , and weak authorization schemes . “ In the robotics community , it seems common to share software frameworks , libraries , operating systems , etc. , for robot development and programming . This isn ’ t bad if the software is secure ; unfortunately , this isn ’ t the case here , ” according to IOActive Labs . Cerrudo said the threat of robots is unique in that many are semiautonomous and can wander and impact their immediate physical environment . “ The threat is limited today , compared to what robots will be capable of in the future , ” he said . Robot components such as microphones , cameras , network connectivity , remote control applications and mobility features that help robots navigate physical environments need better security , Cerrudo said . “ A hacked autonomous robot can move around as long as its battery continues to provide power . This allows hackers to control an ‘ insider threat ’ and steal Attack.Databreach information or cause harm to nearby objects or people , ” according to the report . When asked , Cerrudo could not point to any known cases of a hacked robot causing personal harm or posing a security risk . Nevertheless , he cited several robot-related accidents that he said demonstrate potential risks posed by a hacked robot . In one case cited by IOActive Labs , a woman was killed in an industrial accident in 2015 in Alabama when an industrial robot restarted abruptly . It cited additional loss of life incidents tied to robotic functions within computerized medical and military equipment . “ We aren ’ t aware of any robots that have been hacked . But security of the robots we tested are very poor . Eventually in the future , when robots are more mainstream , we expect cybercriminals will start seeing hacking robots as a way to make money , ” said Lucas Apa , senior security consultant with IOActive Labs . That timeline of mass robot adoption is still a little foggy , according to Apa . According to market research firm IDC , worldwide spending on robots will reach $ 188 billion by 2020 , up from $ 91.5 billion in 2016 . According to IDC many of those robots will include consumer , industrial , and service robots for industries such as healthcare and retail . “ The industry doesn ’ t appear to learn from it ’ s mistakes , ” Cerrudo said .