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In 2024, two University of California, Santa Cruz students found that CSC ServiceWorks’ connected-laundry system could accept commands the CSC GO app was meant to block. They reported that a machine could be made ready to start a cycle despite a zero balance, and that an account’s displayed laundry credit could be manipulated to show millions of dollars. The issue was in the app-to-server payment and authorization system—not the machines’ ability to wash clothes.
What the students found
Alexander Sherbrooke and Iakov Taranenko were examining how the CSC GO mobile app communicated with CSC’s backend services. In their reported demonstration, a machine in their laundry room woke and displayed “PUSH START” even though the account had no funds. They also reported making the app display an apparent balance of several million dollars.
Those results describe laundry credit displayed within the service, not cash that could be withdrawn or evidence that millions of dollars were stolen. The researchers also said they could identify and interact with machines on CSC’s connected network. That does not establish that every machine was accessible or that all machines behaved the same way.
Contemporaneous coverage described the work as involving scripts and observation of the app’s network traffic. The important finding was that commands and account information could be manipulated in ways the normal app interface was not supposed to allow. The underlying reports do not establish that the students accessed payment-card data, nor do they support claims that they unlocked equipment or changed machine settings.
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The security mistake, in plain English
A mobile app runs on a device its user controls. It can hide a button or reject an invalid amount, but those checks are not a security boundary: a determined user can inspect or bypass the app and send requests directly to the service. The server must make its own decisions.
For a paid machine command, the backend should verify who is making the request, whether that person is permitted to use that machine, whether payment is valid, whether the account balance is genuine and whether the requested action is allowed for the machine’s current state. According to the students’ account, CSC’s system trusted decisions or values supplied through the client rather than independently enforcing the necessary checks. That points to broken server-side authorization and insufficient account or payment validation.
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In practical terms, the app should not be able to act as its own cashier and then ask the server to accept its word that a user has paid. The backend must verify the transaction and authorization before sending a command to connected equipment. Updating an app alone would not necessarily correct a server-side trust problem.
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What was demonstrated—and what remains uncertain
- Reported demonstration: a nearby machine became ready for a cycle despite a zero account balance.
- Reported demonstration: an account displayed a fabricated, multimillion-dollar laundry balance.
- Researchers’ account: they could discover and interact with connected machines using the system’s API.
- Not established: access to users’ payment-card information, confirmed financial losses of a particular amount, or control of every connected machine.
The distinction matters. A false balance in an app is not proof of stolen money, and a report that a researcher could interact with machines across a network is not evidence that every unit was compromised. A particular machine might be offline, locally restricted or running a different configuration.
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Why the reported scale needs context
CSC told TechCrunch that its network included more than one million connected laundry machines across residences, hotels, university campuses and other properties in the United States, Canada and Europe. That is a company-reported fleet figure—not a count of machines confirmed vulnerable or exploited. The researchers said the issue could reach machines across the connected network, but actual exposure could vary by machine, property configuration, software and backend deployment.
If exploited beyond a demonstration, the reported weaknesses could enable unauthorized cycles, fraudulent laundry credit or operational disruption. Machine locations or usage information could raise privacy concerns if exposed, but the available reporting does not establish that personal data or payment-card details were accessed. Nor does it show a confirmed financial-loss total.
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Disclosure and CSC’s response
- January 2024: The students said they contacted CSC through an online form and tried to follow up.
- Before May 17: They said they sought help from Carnegie Mellon University’s CERT Coordination Center but received no substantive response before public reporting.
- May 17, 2024: TechCrunch published its account of the free-cycle and fabricated-balance demonstrations.
- After publication: CSC apologized for its delayed response, thanked the researchers and said it had worked with supplier vendors to rectify the issue.
- May 20, 2024: The students’ technical follow-up was reported by Slug Security and summarized by Dark Reading.
CSC’s statement that it worked with suppliers to rectify the issue is the company’s account, not an independently verified public patch report. The public material cited here does not establish a confirmed remediation date, affected or fixed app and backend versions, or independent testing of a fix. It also does not identify a public vulnerability number.
CSC now publishes a responsible-disclosure process with a designated security-reporting email, safe-harbor language for researchers who follow its rules and a target of acknowledging reports within three business days. The policy prohibits destructive testing, accessing sensitive data and continued exploitation. CSC says it does not run a bug-bounty program or promise compensation. This is evidence of a current reporting process; it does not show that the same process was in place when the students first reported the issue.
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What CSC GO does—and why the app name matters
CSC currently describes CSC GO as a touchless laundry service for rooms equipped with its technology. Its app features can include checking machine availability, making payments, adding wallet funds, viewing load status, extending dryer time and requesting refunds. CSC also distinguishes CSC GO from CSCPay Mobile. The 2024 reports concerned the CSC GO app and API as described by the researchers; CSC branding alone does not establish that every property uses the same app, backend or software version.
What users and property managers can do
If you use a CSC laundry room: use the official app specified for your property. If you see an unexplained balance, an unexpected charge or machine activity you did not initiate, record the date and time and keep relevant transaction details or screenshots. Contact CSC through its support information or service and refund channels. Do not try to reproduce the flaw on a live machine, send commands or inspect another user’s information.
If you manage a property: ask CSC which app, firmware and backend controls apply to your machines, and request confirmation of the remediation status relevant to your installation. A fleet-wide claim or an app update alone is not a substitute for confirming that server-side payment and authorization checks are enforced for the equipment you operate.
The broader lesson for connected equipment
When an app controls a payment-linked physical service, the server is responsible for enforcing the rules. Hiding a command in the app is not the same as preventing it on the backend. The CSC GO report is a reminder that connected devices need strong authorization, trustworthy payment validation, monitoring for implausible account activity and a usable channel for reporting security problems.
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