{"id":36764,"date":"2020-01-24T14:00:28","date_gmt":"2020-01-24T03:30:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=36764"},"modified":"2020-03-04T14:50:04","modified_gmt":"2020-03-04T04:20:04","slug":"sungrow-inverter-security","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/sungrow-inverter-security\/","title":{"rendered":"Sungrow Crabby With Researcher Over Inverter Security Vulnerability Disclosure"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"

A Brisbane researcher has alleged serious security vulnerabilities in a Sungrow inverter. Sungrow are not happy with him.<\/p><\/div>\n

Update: patch available – see end of story<\/strong><\/p>\n

A few months after I wrote about security<\/a> in the home renewables space, a Brisbane engineer bought a Sungrow SH5k-20 inverter, decided to \u201cpoke around\u201d, and claims to have turned up a crop of serious security vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n

Sungrow\u2019s response? Angry denial that any security threat exists, a claim that it would take \u201cextraordinary efforts and expertise\u201d to attack its equipment, a legal threat against the researcher (who the company labels as a \u201cperpetrator\u201d), and a demand that \u201call concerned\u201d (we think this includes this blog) not \u201cforward the Misleading Information any further\u201d. Here<\/a> is a copy of the letter.<\/p>\n

So what\u2019s the argument about? According to the researcher, who requested anonymity but told SolarQuotes we could refer to him as Travis, the built-in Wi-Fi hotspot in the inverter is insecure.<\/p>\n

He said the hotspot is enabled by default, and there\u2019s no software option to disable it – it has to be physically removed following the instructions here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Since SolarQuotes doesn\u2019t have the allegedly-vulnerable unit available, we can\u2019t directly confirm the veracity of the researcher\u2019s claims – however, the kinds of implementation mistakes he described to us are depressingly common.<\/p>\n

Travis told us connection to the Wi-Fi hotspot is made using Sungrow\u2019s smartphone app, which passes \u201cmany installer-level credentials\u201d without encryption, and the hotspot has a hidden Web interface that\u2019s also accessible without authentication.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith minimal effort\u201d, he said, an attacker can extract credentials and users\u2019 Wi-Fi passwords.<\/p>\n

On his disclosure page, Travis describes the ways he believes an attacker could disrupt a target system.<\/p>\n

While the \u201capproved\u201d method for connecting to the Wi-Fi is the Sungrow app, the hotspot is open and will show up to a Wi-Fi scan as SG-########### (the hashes are the serial number), and anyone can connect without a password. As is typical with Wi-Fi systems, in the open air the range could be as much as 150 metres, so an attacker could easily get to a system without being seen by the owner (the inverter is rated for installation on external walls).<\/p>\n

The disclosure outlines a few possible attack scenarios: it says the customer\u2019s home network is at risk; malicious misconfiguration puts the user\u2019s battery installation at risk; and a more skilled attacker could act as a man-in-the-middle between the smartphone app and the inverter.<\/p>\n

As well as advising Sungrow, Travis told SolarQuotes he has contacted various government entities including the Australian Federal Police, and said the information has been passed to the Clean Energy Council. We have asked the CEC to confirm whether or not it is aware of the alleged vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n

Comment: Vulnerability Disclosure<\/h2>\n

After a couple of decades writing about technology and security, I find Sungrow\u2019s response anachronistic. Technology companies like Cisco, Microsoft, Intel and the like have, over time, developed a proactive and co-operative approach to security disclosures.<\/p>\n

Here is a typical example<\/a>, from network router giant Cisco. The advisory describes the vulnerability in detail, tells customers how to get fixes, and at the bottom, thanks \u201cSteven Seeley … of Source Incite, working with Trend Micro\u2019s Zero Day Initiative\u201d.<\/p>\n

Now that a disclosure has been published, other people or organisations – some of them will almost certainly be accredited security researchers – can easily either replicate or discredit Travis\u2019s findings.<\/p>\n

Computer and communications companies have well-established, transparent, and public processes for handling alleged security vulnerabilities. Renewable energy is part of the same industry – we embed computers into products and give them communications interfaces for remote control. We would do well to adopt the same approach to security.<\/p>\n

Update: Patch available<\/h2>\n

Good news: the company has now shipped firmware that plugs the bug.
\nThe researcher alerted us to an update to his vulnerability disclosure, announcing the availability of the fix. Sungrow has an explanatory video here<\/a>, and PDF instructions here<\/a>.
\nWe\u2019re pleased to read that the researcher and Sungrow have settled their differences, and that the company has paid him a bug bounty for his discovery. Well done, Sungrow.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Update: patch available – see end of story A few months after I wrote about security in the home renewables space, a Brisbane engineer bought a Sungrow SH5k-20 inverter, decided to \u201cpoke around\u201d, and claims to have turned up a crop of serious security vulnerabilities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":36777,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[48],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-solar-inverters","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSungrow Crabby With Researcher Over Security Vulnerability Disclosure<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A Brisbane researcher has alleged serious security vulnerabilities in a Sungrow inverter. 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With so many solar inverters now internet-connected, the risks associated with a mass takeover of systems by hackers looms large as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Solar Inverters"","block_context":{"text":"Solar Inverters","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/category\/solar-inverters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Solar inverter security","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/solar-inverter-security.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/solar-inverter-security.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/solar-inverter-security.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/solar-inverter-security.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/solar-inverter-security.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":100247,"url":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/best-home-battery-in-australia-2026\/","url_meta":{"origin":36764,"position":2},"title":"Best Home Battery In Australia 2026: Installer\u2019s Choice Awards","author":"Finn Peacock","date":"July 27, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Continuing the 2026 Installer's Choice Awards, we asked Australia's solar installers a simple question: \"Which home battery would you choose for your own home?\" These are the people designing, installing and servicing battery systems every day, so they have a front-row seat to what works well in the real world.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Battery Storage"","block_context":{"text":"Battery Storage","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/category\/battery-storage\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"2026 Installer Choice Awards - best home battery","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2026-awards-home-battery.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2026-awards-home-battery.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2026-awards-home-battery.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2026-awards-home-battery.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/2026-awards-home-battery.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":100278,"url":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/best-ev-chargers-2026\/","url_meta":{"origin":36764,"position":3},"title":"The Best Home EV Chargers In 2026 Are Made By Battery Manufacturers","author":"Finn Peacock","date":"August 11, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"With full EVs accounting for more than one in five cars sold in July 2026, home EV chargers are selling like hot cakes. 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