--- title: Most people never update their networking equipment, and... description: Consumer routers are rarely updated, with surveys showing 84% of users have never patched their router firmware and 81% never changed the default admin... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/most-people-never-update-their-networking-equipment-and-cybercriminals-know-it-llxuc2636 twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Most people never update their networking equipment, and cybercriminals know it | daily.dev og:description: Consumer routers are rarely updated, with surveys showing 84% of users have never patched their router firmware and 81% never changed the default admin... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/most-people-never-update-their-networking-equipment-and-cybercriminals-know-it-llxuc2636 og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/lLXUC2636.png og:image:alt: Most people never update their networking equipment, and cybercriminals know it og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Most people never update their networking equipment, and cybercriminals know it **[XDA Developers](https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers)** · 4 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Consumer routers are rarely updated, with surveys showing 84% of users have never patched their router firmware and 81% never changed the default admin password. The FBI warned in May 2025 that criminals actively hunt end-of-life routers, citing the TheMoon malware family that compromised thousands of Asus routers within days without needing credentials, exploiting open ports instead. Nation-state actors have also targeted forgotten, unpatched routers, forcing the FBI to obtain a court order to remotely wipe malware from infected devices. Newer routers with auto-updates are safer, but end-of-life hardware that no longer receives firmware support remains highly vulnerable, and the piece urges readers to check their router's model against manufacturer end-of-life lists and replace outdated equipment. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### What percentage of people have never updated their router's firmware? A 2025 survey of 3,242 internet users found that 84% have never updated their router's firmware, 81% never changed the default admin password, and 47% never changed factory default settings. This is only a slight improvement from 2018, when 86% had never updated their router firmware, according to a separate survey. _Staying on top of security research like this helps developers securing home and small-office networks avoid becoming easy targets, something daily.dev readers can track._ ### How did the TheMoon malware compromise thousands of routers so quickly? A 2024 variant of the TheMoon malware compromised 6,000 Asus routers within 72 hours and ultimately infected roughly 40,000 devices across 88 countries. It does not need a password to take over a device; it only needs an open port to send its script to, making mass scanning cheap and effective against unpatched, internet-facing hardware. _Developers building or hardening network-facing services can follow threats like this on daily.dev to avoid similar exposure._ ### Why did the FBI have to remotely delete malware from routers instead of contacting owners? The FBI obtained a court order to remotely delete malware from infected routers because the owners had no idea their hardware was compromised, making individual outreach impractical at scale. This action targeted a botnet linked to nation-state actors that had exploited end-of-life router hardware no longer receiving vendor updates. _Tracking government and vendor responses to infrastructure threats like this is easier for security-minded engineers on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [US targets foreign-made routers as security concerns rise, but experts warn risks go further](https://daily.dev/posts/us-targets-foreign-made-routers-as-security-concerns-rise-but-experts-warn-risks-go-further-xr3kzlmyo) · IT Security Guru · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Your 5-year-old router isn't just slow — it's an unpatched security loophole](https://daily.dev/posts/your-5-year-old-router-isn-t-just-slow-it-s-an-unpatched-security-loophole-oavyhuzrh) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Network security devices endanger orgs with ’90s era flaws](https://daily.dev/posts/network-security-devices-endanger-orgs-with-90s-era-flaws-veovpsxdp) · CSO Online · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#security](https://daily.dev/tags/security), [#networking](https://daily.dev/tags/networking) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/most-people-never-update-their-networking-equipment-and-cybercriminals-know-it-llxuc2636) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Most people never update their networking equipment, and cybercriminals know it","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/most-people-never-update-their-networking-equipment-and-cybercriminals-know-it-llxuc2636","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/most-people-never-update-their-networking-equipment-and-cybercriminals-know-it-llxuc2636"},"datePublished":"2026-08-14T12:02:05.007Z","dateModified":"2026-08-14T12:02:33.578Z","description":"Consumer routers are rarely updated, with surveys showing 84% of users have never patched their router firmware and 81% never changed the default admin...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/c0a48f38854c4377550581274fa6b19a?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/c0a48f38854c4377550581274fa6b19a?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"XDA Developers","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"XDA Developers","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--kCg6yyAP--/f_auto,q_auto/v1774964407/logos/xda-developers?_a=BAMAMiWQ0","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/most-people-never-update-their-networking-equipment-and-cybercriminals-know-it-llxuc2636","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"security,networking","timeRequired":"PT4M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"XDA Developers","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/xda-developers"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Most people never update their networking equipment, and cybercriminals know it"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/most-people-never-update-their-networking-equipment-and-cybercriminals-know-it-llxuc2636#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What percentage of people have never updated their router's firmware?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"A 2025 survey of 3,242 internet users found that 84% have never updated their router's firmware, 81% never changed the default admin password, and 47% never changed factory default settings. 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