The internet is a beautiful and terrifying place. This series is what we’re all about: the top 10 issues that threaten your cybersecurity. As an entrepreneur, you’ve got a lot on your plate, but this cannot be overlooked https://afrohistorama.info/ guides you through the newest and most pressing dangers.
This issue: What’s going on with IoT? Why does everyone want it? Learn more about connected devices and how they’re tampered with in order to steal data or cause physical damage. We’ll also talk about some specific security risks that affect IoT, like DDoS attacks and ransomware infiltrating manufacturers’ systems.
What is a DDoS Attack?
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If you’re not up-to-date on the Internet of Things (IoT), or you’ve never heard of it, don’t feel bad. It was a huge buzzword a few years ago, and it basically started out as a way to explain “smart technology.” The term IoT now includes everything from phones to Wi-Fi cameras, so it can be confusing to brainstorm exactly what is being referred to when people say “IoT.” Still, IoT has been making headlines of late, and with the steady increase of cyberattacks, it’s a topic that you can’t afford to ignore. In this article, we’ll explain exactly what is going on with IoT and how you can protect yourself from the threats.
Why Everyone Wants It:
As we mentioned before, IoT can be really confusing. That’s why we decided to use a practical example: cars.
For the longest time, the Internet of Things has been touted as being able to provide answers to three questions: how much gas is left in your car, when your car is due for service, and whether it’s safe to drive. It was all just a matter of time before cars would be autonomous. Sure enough, autonomous vehicles are coming—and they’re being touted as being safer than their human counterparts. For now though, these cars are just considered “connected”—they have connectivity features that allow them to communicate with other connected technologies.
Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid
So, you’ve got cars like the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid (below) that can connect to your smartphone, be charged by your smart home, and even allow you to make dinner reservations. It’s clear that anyone who wants their car to be smart is going to want it connected. And this is just one example of how people are using IoT.
Growing Demand for IoT:
The demand for IoT isn’t slowing down any time soon either. According to Forrester Research , there will be $350 billion spent on IoT solutions in 2018—and that number will only grow as more industries become interested in the technology.
To give an example, nearly 60% of manufacturers plan to use IoT in order to monitor the health and safety of their products. They’re seeing how connected technology can monitor their employees’ health so they can keep them working safely. But it also makes sense for companies to deploy IoT systems on their vehicles as a way to make sure they’re running properly and reducing downtime. And as we all know, you don’t want your car breaking down on the side of a road!
According to Gartner, around 20 billion devices will be connected by 2020—and those numbers are only going up from there.
What It Means for Your Business:
To keep pace with these growing demands, businesses are utilizing IoT in a variety of ways. Let’s take the example of the coffee machine that we used previously—it can monitor its coffee to see if it’s running low. If the coffee is running low, you could receive an alert on your phone so you can stop shopping! On top of this convenience, it also gives companies access to better customer data.
You can compare this to your home or office using technology like Nest or Dropcam, which allows you to monitor your home or office remotely by sending alerts when there are problems with connected devices.
Smoke alarm
In the case of Nest, they have a “smart” smoke alarm that can alert you to a dangerous situation from anywhere in the world. Similarly, Dropcam has a home monitoring system that allows you to see what’s going on inside your house when you’re gone by sending alerts for motion detection, sound detection, and other necessary security concerns.
At the same time, this IoT technology is being used to keep businesses more efficient. Even big companies like Radiator Labs are taking advantage of connected technology to monitor their manufacturing process. Using customized software, they can track their products in real-time to make sure they’re being made correctly.
How to Protect Your IoT Devices:
You can probably already imagine some of the ways that hackers could infiltrate your devices. If you used, say, a Dropcam at home, do you think it would be that difficult for someone to get into your camera? You may already know that there are many different types of malware that are used for monitoring webcams—and it’s not hard to imagine them being used on IoT devices. The same goes for smart cars—if you have a car with Wi-Fi capabilities on it, it could potentially be hacked by someone with the right hacking tools.
