Internet of Things

Internet of Things

            Everyone is becoming increasingly dependent on technology including cell phones, tablets, desktops, laptops, watches, thermostats, doorbells, security cameras, and any number of other devices able to send and receive data from the internet, collectively these devices comprise the Internet of things (IoT). (Morgan) The expansion of Broadband Internet coupled with more Wi-Fi capable devices has created the “perfect storm” for IoT with some projections estimating that over 26 billion devices will be part of the IoT by 2020. (Morgan) Further the analyst firm Gartner puts the number of devices closer to 100 billion including virtually any device with an “on / off” switch. (Morgan)

The Impact of the IoT on Business IT

The IoT brings the benefit of having everyone and virtually everything connected through the internet with the daunting task of keeping this massive amount of information, and internet access, safe and secure.  The unprecedented reliance on computer systems will created huge vulnerabilities and risk for businesses and business IT systems.  Continually changing systems, increasing complexity and the sheer number of devices at risk will challenge any IT department and when coupled with malicious malware (viruses, worms, phishing, etc.) will present a need for robust and expensive firewalls and other access restriction platforms. (Reynolds 88) Companies of all sizes will be susceptible and when a weakness is found, could be targeted for things like information mining.  Recent examples of established and successful companies that have been subject to similar attacks include Marriott, Equifax, Adult Friend Finder, Anthem, Uber, eBay, JP Morgan Chase, Home Depot, and Yahoo costing these companies millions of dollars and their customers’ priceless amounts of data (Armerding).  Between 2014 and 2016 over 500 million people had personal information compromised in the recent Marriott data breach. (Gressin)

IoT Security Challenges

Device authorization and authentication is likely to become a major issue (Gerber).  Devices must establish their identity by using device specific passwords.  Unfortunately, most of us are reluctant to use strong and complex passwords and prefer using easy to remember and familiar passwords or even device default passwords making passwords a major point of failure in the IoT system. (Gerber) Second, the use of inter-device communication platforms such as cloud services or commercial applications will require additional scrutiny. (Gerber) Early IoT devices do not encrypt data before sending or sharing with communication platforms.  Using separate networks to isolate certain devices will be necessary to reduce the likelihood of unwanted system entry.  And finally, ensuring high access with limited down time will be extremely challenging for certain IoT services including traffic control, healthcare, and other life essential services. (Gerber) The cost to replace last generation equipment is very expensive and therefore the challenge in front of the IT department will be to incorporate aging technology with a single point of failure with the more sophisticated IoT systems and security requirements.  

Works Cited

Reynolds, George Walter. Ethics in Information Technology. 5th ed., Cengage, 2019.

Armerding, Taylor. “The 18 Biggest Data Breaches of the 21st Century.” CSO Online, CSO, 20 Dec. 2018, www.csoonline.com/article/2130877/the-biggest-data-breaches-of-the-21st-century.html.

Whittaker, Zack. “Marriott Now Says 5 Million Unencrypted Passport Numbers Were Stolen in Starwood Hotel Data Breach – TechCrunch.” TechCrunch, TechCrunch, 4 Jan. 2019, techcrunch.com/2019/01/04/marriott-five-million-passport-numbers-stolen-starwood/.

Gressin, Seena. “The Marriott Data Breach.” Consumer Information, 4 Dec. 2018, www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/2018/12/marriott-data-breach.

Morgan, Jacob. “A Simple Explanation Of 'The Internet Of Things'.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 20 Apr. 2017, www.forbes.com/sites/jacobmorgan/2014/05/13/simple-explanation-internet-things-that-anyone-can-understand/#637c5fde1d09.

Gerber, Anna. “IoT Security Issues: Top 10 Challenges.” IBM Developer, developer.ibm.com/articles/iot-top-10-iot-security-challenges/.