By 2020 there will be an estimated 212 billion IoT objects connected to the internet. An IoT object is any device with an on/off switch connected to the internet. We are currently sharing a series of blog posts to help you navigate what IoT means for your home, business, and city. Previously in our series, we discussed what IoT is, its implication for your home, for small businesses, and for the cities we live in. In our latest installment, we are covering the security risk associated with IoT.
Whether at home, at work, or in cities, the gains garnered by IoT are hard to beat. Effective IoT lowers the cost of doing business, increases productivity, improves the overall experience in cities, and allows one a firmer handle of real-time data. However, the multitude of connected devices opens our homes, businesses, and cities up to new risks in network and identity security from bad actors.
An industry joke goes like this: “the S in IoT stands for security.”
There is no S in IoT. In the same way, IoT devices are notoriously lacking in security measures. The lack of security in IoT devices is alarming considering that, according to a recent report, IoT attacks grew 280% from the prior six-month reporting period.
Digging deeper, it is apparent that a large chunk of this growth stems from Mirai—malware that infects IoT devices like wireless cameras and home routers that have standardized factory passwords and turns them into controllable bots. The malware co-opts thousands of unprotected IoT devices and directs them to send signals to overload specific networks. In fact, a Mirai attack happened in 2016 and shutdown sites like Etsy, Pinterest, Netflix, The New York Times, SoundCloud, and Twitter, among other major websites. Estimates project that roughly $110 million in potential revenue was lost in this attack.
One consistent factor in attacks that compromise vast networks is when devices in use maintain their default username and password set in the factory. Because these passwords are standardized, hackers infiltrate devices operating with unchanged passwords and then are able to dictate the action of those devices at-will.
If you own any device that connects to the internet, you need to seriously consider what security protocols you want to take to protect your network. If you are in the Texas Hill Country, schedule a consultation with HCTS. We have multiple decades of experience installing the networks for Fortune 500 companies and U.S. Embassies abroad. We value any opportunity available to protect and serve our neighbors in the Highland Lakes.
