# Plume Security Labs Exposes Hidden Proxy Network Inside SuperBox Streaming Devices that Route Potentially Harmful Traffic over Home Networks

- Link: https://www.thailand-business-news.com/pr-news/plume-security-labs-exposes-hidden-proxy-network-inside-superbox-streaming-devices-that-route-potentially-harmful-traffic-over-home-networks
- Published: 2026-05-28T19:00:00+07:00
- Author: PR Newswire

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_Investigation reveals media streaming devices sold at major U.S. retailers silently
tunnel third-party internet traffic, including potentially stolen credentials and
enterprise security bypass operations through subscribers’ home broadband connections_

PALO ALTO, Calif., May 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — [**Plume Design, Inc.**](https://edge.prnewswire.com/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4698178-1&h=2079560866&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.plume.com%2F&a=Plume+Design%2C+Inc.)("
Plume"), the global subscriber experience platform for more than 450 Internet Service
Providers (ISPs) across 58 countries, today released a [**report**](https://edge.prnewswire.com/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4698178-1&h=826727564&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.plume.com%2Fresources%2Fsuperproxy-the-unhealthy-marriage-of-superbox-and-residential-proxies&a=report)
that uncovers significant security concerns found in SuperBox Android streaming 
devices sold at major U.S. retailers, which contain dormant software that when activated
converts consumers’ home internet connections into nodes in a residential proxy 
network or SuperProxy. The proxy routes unknown third-party traffic that includes
potentially stolen credentials, account takeover materials and enterprise security
bypass operations through subscriber households without their knowledge or consent.
The report, based on a months-long investigation, is the first in a series from 
Plume’s Security Labs.

 [⌊Plume Security Labs Exposes Hidden Proxy Network Inside SuperBox Streaming Devices that Route Potentially Harmful Traffic over Home Networks.⌉](https://mma.prnasia.com/media2/2989435/PLUME_DESIGN_INC__Security_Labs.jpg?p=medium600)

Plume Security Labs Exposes Hidden Proxy Network Inside SuperBox Streaming Devices
that Route Potentially Harmful Traffic over Home Networks.

"The average connected home is becoming increasingly complex, more like a corporate
network, and threats like this one illustrate the need for significantly enhanced
levels of intelligence and security," said Chris Griffiths, Chief Technology Officer
at Plume. "ISPs are better situated than ever to be on the forefront of detecting
and resolving these issues. By leveraging AI and large-scale network orchestration
across hundreds of millions of devices, we can help ISPs spot anomalies that individual
households or traditional security tools often miss, and act on them before they
spread."

Plume manages one of the most comprehensive data sets in the telecommunications 
industry, monitoring more than 500 million connected devices across 40 million households
globally. After an alert from a customer, Plume’s Network Operations Center flagged
anomalous outbound traffic from an unusually high number of streaming devices across
its network. The traffic volume was sufficient to destabilize residential networks,
prompting Plume’s Security Labs to launch a comprehensive technical investigation
into streaming devices, spanning multiple models, across its user base.

"The SuperProxy investigation is a wake-up call," said Eric Svenson, Vice President,
Technology Engineering and Operations at Armstrong, (a multi-state operator based
in Pennsylvania). "Consumer devices are being weaponized inside our subscribers’
homes, and as their ISP, we have both the responsibility and the vantage point to
do something about it. Plume’s research is the kind of partnership our industry 
needs more of; work that protects Armstrong customers today and sets a higher standard
for what every subscriber should expect from their provider."

"These devices ship with remote access and full administrative control, wide open
and require no password, no authentication, no user approval," said Griffiths. "
Unfortunately, this isn’t limited to a single product. The same residential proxy
software was used in other types of consumer media streaming devices and also used
in other malicious campaigns such as the Vo1d botnet, which demonstrates this is
a broader supply-chain problem across the streaming ecosystem."

**Five Key Findings**

**A streaming app secretly turns the device into a proxy network node.** One of 
the apps available through SuperBox’s custom application store, Cyberflix TV, contains
hidden proxy software called Popanet that silently registers the device with a remote
command server and begins relaying foreign internet traffic through the subscriber’s
home connection. Plume’s telemetry recorded tens of thousands of outbound connections
per device per day to thousands of distinct destinations.

**Sensitive credentials and security bypass attempts are flowing through subscriber
homes.** Researchers intercepted the actual traffic being routed through the proxy
and found sensitive login credentials for gaming platforms, messaging app verification
codes that could be used for real-time account takeovers, deliberate attempts to
defeat enterprise security systems and large-scale automated web scraping, all passing
through consumer broadband connections without the subscriber’s knowledge.

**Plume mapped more than 250 proxy server addresses.** Researchers fully reverse-
engineered Popanet’s command-and-control protocol — the first publicly known teardown
of this system — and mapped more than 250 verified server addresses across multiple
hosting providers, revealing a professionally built proxy operation.

**A security flaw in the proxy’s own code exposes the home network.** The proxy 
attempts to block access to the subscriber’s local network, but contains a bypass
that was confirmed through live testing. Remote proxy users can exploit this flaw
to reach the device’s own internal services, potentially extending the compromise
beyond the device to the home network itself.

**SuperBox’s custom app store bypasses all standard Android safety checks.** The
store installs software silently with full administrative privileges: no security
verification, no warnings and no user approval. Its catalog is controlled by the
store’s operator, not by Google nor the device owner.

**Plume’s Approach**

Plume is identifying and isolating these proxies for blocking at multiple levels
and sharing intelligence with its ISP customers. Monitoring these proxies is extending
Plume’s detection capabilities to additional threat types including Distributed 
Denial of Service (DDoS) tools and botnets.

**Multi-phased Research**

This is Part 1 of a three-part investigative series into SuperBox and the hidden
security risks it presents inside subscriber homes. Part 2 will expose the malware
ecosystem exploiting subscriber devices, including botnet agents and competing proxy
SDKs, and detail how Plume helps ISPs detect and block these threats. Part 3 will
examine the content delivery infrastructure behind SuperBox’s "latest movies" promise,
presenting technical evidence that raises serious questions about the origin of 
that content.

The full research paper is available at:

[**plume.com/resources/superproxy-the-unhealthy-marriage-of-superbox-and-residential-proxies**](https://edge.prnewswire.com/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4698178-1&h=1246350795&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.plume.com%2Fresources%2Fsuperproxy-the-unhealthy-marriage-of-superbox-and-residential-proxies&a=plume.com%2Fresources%2Fsuperproxy-the-unhealthy-marriage-of-superbox-and-residential-proxies)

**About PlumePlume established the first managed WiFi platform for ISPs in 2016,
enabling the company to scale across the globe and expand into managing the entire
subscriber experience, including approximately 500 million connected devices, in
40 million homes, on behalf of 450 ISPs, across 58 countries. By integrating managed
WiFi, cybersecurity and customer care, Plume created the first open, hardware-agnostic
SaaS Subscriber Experience Platform for ISPs. Powered by an unmatched global dataset
and AI optimization, the Plume Platform builds subscriber confidence through improved
Wi-Fi experiences, seamless new service implementation and proactive customer care.
Plume’s open-source framework OpenSync^(®) is pre-integrated and supported on the
leading silicon, CPE and platform SDKs, and supports leading industry standards 
like RDK-B and prplWave. Discover more about how Plume is empowering ISPs at [plume.com](https://edge.prnewswire.com/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4698178-1&h=3687425490&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.plume.com%2F&a=plume.com).

**About ArmstrongFor over 80 years, Armstrong has been a leader in telecommunications
technology and innovation. Founded in 1946 by Jud L. Sedwick as Armstrong County
Line Construction, Armstrong remains a family-owned and operated company deeply 
committed to the communities it serves.

Armstrong’s world-class fiber network spans six states—Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland,
New York, West Virginia, and Kentucky—delivering advanced infrastructure with a 
focus on exceptional customer service and satisfaction. The company provides 24/
7 local support, transparent pricing, and complimentary technical service to residential
and business customers throughout its service area.

For more information on Armstrong’s Advanced Fiber Network, please visit [ArmstrongOneWire.com/network](https://edge.prnewswire.com/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=4698178-1&h=184796061&u=http%3A%2F%2Farmstrongonewire.com%2Fnetwork&a=ArmstrongOneWire.com%2Fnetwork).

 

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