Communications of the ACM
The Internet of Things Brings Far-Reaching Security Threats
Bringing new devices online at home and in the enterprise raises a host of security concerns.
Credit: CIO
U.S. Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) program manager Randy Garrett warns the advent of the Internet of Things (IoT) will create a large number of new threat vectors that could be exploited by malicious hackers.
Garrett says the potential risks associated with the IoT were evident during the data security breach at Target last year. The breach was carried out by someone who managed to access systems containing customers' payment card information by first breaking into a system a contractor used to control heating and air conditioning at Target stores via the Internet. Payment card information belonging to millions of Target customers was subsequently exposed, which in turn likely resulted in significant damage to the retailer's reputation.
Connecting a wide variety of devices to the Internet to create an IoT creates several security problems, Garrett says. The most significant problem likely is that not enough will be done to protect these newly-connected devices, since users may not see them as being potential targets for malicious hackers, according to Garrett.
Michael Chui, a senior fellow at the McKinsey Global Institute, says some solutions could be found in a rethinking of organizations and their traditional roles and processes.
From CIO
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