Kevin Nyango
Before thinking about investing IoT smart home device in your home, it is important to put security as a priority.
TechInAfrica – The increased growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) in the market makes homes even smarter, more efficient, as well as convenient. However, internet connection always followed by risks, goes the same with IoT. It somehow may increase your vulnerability as it is warned by Fortinet.
By the invention of IoT, it makes smart home technology get more advanced, especially by the addition of smart sensors and independent internet connections to appliances and devices. They control it themselves with human interventions. IoT has the ability to take control of everything automatically by triggering an action in an appliance. By the advanced use of IoT sensors and connected SIMs, they enable manufacturers to produce heaters and air conditioners that switch on/off to keep a constant room temperature, lights that automatically switch on and off based on a room condition, door locks itself by organizing the homeowner or unlock without keys, etc,.
Doros Hadjizenonos, a Regional Sales Director of Fortinet says that IoT-enabled appliances will soon reach South Africans’ homes. Moreover, he says that people nowadays have gradually moved to smart homes as they also embrace smart TVs and media servers. These devices indeed make life look simpler and easy, however, you cannot guarantee that all manufacturers put security as their main priority as they create smart devices.
It is found on Fortinet latest Global Threat Landscape Report that lately criminals have targeted IoT devices and media servers in homes. They use the term ‘cryptojacking’ that refers to the action of using a device’s computing power to mine for cryptocurrency. The action occurs as a result of its rich source of computational horsepower which can be used for malicious purposes. The attackers want to take advantage of them by loading malware where it is continually mining as the devices are always connected. The attackers exploit the devices by modifying web browsers which leads to the increase of vulnerabilities.
Cryptojacking will not cause a direct threat, but it will cause IoT devices to run slower. However, if the code in a home controlled by someone who is not the owner, it is possible that they would monitor personal information on the home network.
Smart devices like baby monitor and smart vacuum cleaners have a history of being hacked previously. Hadjizenonos then says that there will be a small prevention in the future to reduce the chance of passwords being stolen, children being tracked, as well as the movements of homeowners being monitored.
As most customers usually control their smart appliances through one router, smart home security, later on, should be focused more on this matter. It is much recommended that homeowners need to ensure the security of their network before investing in smart and IoT-enabled devices, lock down their routers, and take a good advantage of security services from their ISPs. Moreover, it is also recommended for them to have a regular check on patches and updates to ensure these appliances and devices are secured.
With a simple and affordable solution, Fortinet’s FortiGate makes routers and network security appliances suitable for home as well as small business use. The aim is to protect them from external attacks and data-stealing using an easily-managed of a single console.
