Ring and Nest security cameras are being targeted by hacking group who harass homeowners and broadcast the abuse on podcast - including chilling 'I'm Santa Claus' threat to eight-year-old girl.

A string of hacks on Ring and Nest security cameras are being linked back to a podcast that broadcasts the intrusions for laughs.

According to a report from Motherboard, a podcast dubbed NulledCast, has been involved in a number of hacks on the Amazon-owned Ring security cameras in which hackers commandeer the device's microphone to harass victims on the other side.

Just this week, a mother from Mississippi released a video of the team behind NulledCast talking to her eight-year-old daughter through a Ring security camera in her bedroom.

The group is also linked to an incident in Florida, in which one of the hosts who calls himself 'Chance,' hacked into a device to blare loud noises and berate a family with racial slurs, Vice reports.