Avast Blog_Security News : What risks do IoT security issues pose to businesses?

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The Internet of Things (IoT) can increase efficiency, but it also comes with new risks. Find out why and how to protect your business in our article.

What is IoT security?

IoT security is the protection of Internet of Things devices from attack. While many business owners are aware that they need to protect computers and phones with antivirus, the security risks related to IoT devices are less well known and their protection is too often neglected.

Internet of Things devices are everywhere. From cars and fridges to monitoring devices on assembly lines, objects around us are increasingly being connected to the internet. The speed at which the IoT market is growing is staggering - Juniper research estimates that the number of IoT sensors and devices is set to exceed 50 billion by 2022.

While consumer IoT devices allow lifestyle benefits, businesses are quickly adopting IoT devices due to high potential for savings. For example, after Harley-Davidson turned their York, Pennsylvania plant to a ‘smart factory’ using IoT devices in every step of the production process, they reduced costs by 7% and increased net margin by 19%.

What are the security issues in IoT?

While IoT devices can greatly increase productivity for businesses, they also come with risks. Since IoT devices are connected to the internet, they can be hacked just like any other internet-enabled device.

To sufficiently protect your network, it’s essential to understand the security vulnerabilities of IoT devices. One of the key IoT security issues is the expansion of attack surfaces due to an increased number of endpoints. In a network, endpoints are the devices that are connected to the internet at large - each offering a point of entry to bad actors, exposing the network to outside risks.

The attack surface of a network consists of all the possible places where it can be attacked, and it expands with every new internet-connected device. Even if the chance of one device being accessed by a perpetrator is small, the large number of IoT devices being brought into businesses can create a significant security risk.

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