WeWork wi-fi extremely vulnerable to hackers placing tenants at risk: Report

The WiFi networks WeWork offers tenants of its three Amsterdam offices are so poorly secured that hackers can access tenants' computers with out much difficulty, NU.nl reports based on research the news site did with two cyber security consultants.

WeWork is part of America's The We Company. It rents office space to companies and self-employed. It has offices in 33 countries, including three in Amsterdam.

Accessing the WiFi network at the WeWork offices in Amsterdam is very easy, NU.nl found in its research. The company uses a very easy-to-guess password that can also be found by searching for it via Google, according to the newspaper. According to the cyber security experts that worked with the newspaper, hackers "with some expertise in systems and networks" can fairly easily intercept encrypted passwords and access the computers of companies renting office space from WeWork.

A number of printers were also visible on the WeWork WiFi network, including some belonging to a major software provider, according to NU.nl. These printers could be fairly easily accessed. Hackers can instruct printers to print and scan, but can also request copies of everything that's been printed or scanned. The cyber security consultants called this a very big vulnerability.

NU.nl's consultants gained access to around 30 computers and a handful of printers connected to the WeWork network, though the newspaper stressed that no sensitive files were viewed.