5 Things to Know About IoT Security

The Internet of things (IoT) is the network of physical devices, vehicles, home appliances and other items entrenched with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and network connectivity which enable these objects to connect and exchange data. Each thing is exclusively identifiable through its entrenched computing system but is able to inter-operate within the existing Internet infrastructure.

IoT security is the area of endeavor concerned with safeguarding connected devices and networks in the Internet of things.

5 Things to Know About IoT Security

The Internet of Things involves the increasing use of objects and entities – known, in this context as things -- provided with unique identifiers and the ability to automatically transfer data over a network. Much of the increase in IoT communication comes from computing devices and embedded sensor systems used in industrial machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, smart energy grids, home and building automation, vehicle to vehicle communication and wearable computing devices. 

The main trouble is that because the idea of networking appliances and other objects is relatively new, security has not always been considered in product design.  IoT products are often sold with old and unpatched embedded operating systems and software. Furthermore, purchasers often not succeed to change the default passwords on smart devices -- or if they do change them, fail to select sufficiently strong passwords. To improve security, an IoT device that needs to be directly accessible over the Internet, should be segmented into its own network and have network access restricted. The network segment should then be monitored to identify potential abnormal traffic, and action should be taken if there is a problem.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is rapidly emerging as the manifestation of the Networked Society vision: where everything that benefits from a connection is connected. But the assumptions of trust which formed the backdrop to the early development of the internet no longer apply in the early stages of IoT development. Privacy and security concerns are ever increasing, especially given the growing significance of IoT in corporate, government, and critical infrastructure contexts.

So, five main things you should know about IoT are:

1.      Cost Savings

Cost Saving

In addition to the optimal utilization of energy and resources, the IoT helps alleviate the problems associated with bottlenecks, breakdowns and system damages. IoT mainly proves to be very helpful to people in their every day routines by making the appliances communicate to each other in an effective manner thereby saving and conserving energy and cost. Allowing the data to be communicated and shared between devices and then translating it into our required way, it makes our systems efficient.

2.      Communication

Device to Device Communication

 IoT allows physical devices to stay connected and better communicate, which creates greater quality

control. IoT encourages the communication between devices, also famously known as Machine-to

Machine (M2M) communication. Because of this, the physical devices are able to stay connected and

hence the total transparency is available with lesser inefficiencies and greater quality.

3.      Automation and Control

IOT Based Home Automation & Control

Automation leads to consistency in tasks, quality of service and control of day-to-day tasks without human intervention. Machine-to-machine communication also helps maintain transparency throughout the process. Due to physical objects getting connected and controlled digitally and centrally with wireless infrastructure, there is a large amount of automation and control in the workings. Without human interference, the machines are able to communicate with each other leading to faster and timely output.

4.      Efficient and Saves Time

The machine-to-machine interaction provides better efficiency, hence; accurate results can be obtained fast. This results in saving valuable time. Instead of repeating the same tasks every day, it enables people to do other creative jobs.

5.      Privacy and Security

Privacy & Security in a Connected World

As many of our daily appliances, machines and services become connected to the internet, much more information is readily available. It makes it harder to keep confidential information out of the hands of hackers and other unauthorized users. Since there is involvement of multiple devices and technologies, there is monitoring by multiple companies, which directly questions the security over privacy issues. Data storage and retrieval also becomes a prime concern for the companies as all of them are involved at the same time. In case of keeping a single company, it may lead to a domination question.

Ultimately, you have to agree that the Internet of Things presents new technological opportunities across various dimensions. If properly implemented, it could offer a host of new possibilities for your business as well.

Author : - Faculty of CSE Department - SIRT Bhopal - Top Engineering Colleges in Bhopal