How will the internet of things impact data security? | Guardian Small Business Network | The Guardian

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1. November 25, 2015 at 8:49 am

   Tomi Engdahl says:

   3 reasons to be wary of the Internet of Things
   http://www.cio.com/article/2895398/internet/3-reasons-to-be-wary-of-the-internet-of-things.html

   Credit: Thinkstock
   IT and security experts discuss why companies and consumers alike should be careful about deploying ‘smart’ appliances and devices that connect to the Internet and offer steps to protect against security and privacy threats.

   Concern No. 1: Unlawful surveillance/invasion of privacy

   “The Internet-connected modules installed on various devices (e.g., cars, toys, home appliances, etc.) can be used for unlawful surveillance,” says Daniel Dimov, security researcher, InfoSec Institute. “For example, an Internet-connected door lock can be used to monitor when a person enters or leaves their home,” he says. And smart TVs and child monitors can watch you.

   Concern No. 2: Threat to enterprise data and network security

   “Businesses should be wary of IoT in terms of connected devices and the security of their networks,” says Reggie Best, chief product officer, Lumeta. “Any device with built-in network connectivity creates a risk, a so-called backdoor connection that could be exploited for data exfiltration,” or a DDoS attack.

   Concern No. 3: No good, comprehensive way to manage all of these IoT devices

   “When looking at the current state of the Internet of Things, the industry lacks one glaring success factor: a set of standards for application program interfaces (APIs), which are credited as being the building blocks of the IoT – and are essential for managing all of these disparate devices,” explains Lee Odess, general manager, Brivo Labs.

   “In order for IoT devices to efficiently and securely communicate, and be properly managed, APIs need to essentially speak the same language. So creating a standardized API will make a world of difference,” he says.

   “IoT is creating a surge in the number of mobile devices, with the number of M2M devices expected to surpass 40 billion by 2020,” says Frank Yue, senior technical marketing manager, F5 Networks. “That’s five times more M2M devices than consumer wireless devices.”

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