How cool would it be to click off your lights at homeduring the day, while youre at work? Or set your temperature controls to kick on the heat an hour or two before you head home? For smart home owners, these kinds of conveniences are an everyday reality that has lots of perks. However, these early adopters are still working with technology thats in its infancy, which means that manufacturers are still working out a lot of the early kinks that come with the territory. Unfortunately, some of the biggest problems with smart homes so far have been related to security. Potential smart home owners have some legitimate concerns over the cyber vulnerabilities involved with getting in on the smart home trend. Before smart homes can go mainstream, many consumers are going to ask the question: are these homes worth the security risks?
Ever-Evolving Features
One one hand, smart home technology is very appealingand will only become more appealing with time as the technology develops. Current smart home technology mostly supports fairly simple tasks, like controlling the lights or the television, but as technology integrates new artificial intelligence features, smart homes will be able to make our lives easier in myriad ways. Everything will be connected to the Internet, from refrigerators to toilets. Our refrigerators could tell us when certain food items are about to go bad, and our thermostats could learn what temperatures we prefer at different times of day. These features will enhance the appeal and functionality of smart homes, but with every connected device, the security risks increase.
Early Security Holes
Early smart home systems have some serious security flaws that have come to light within the last few years. Trailblazing smart home manufacturers have been more concerned with innovation and getting their products to market than in keeping up with the latest developments in cyber security. These companies often neglect even the basics of keeping their smart home systems safe, making them ridiculously easy to hack. One Synack security analyst who tested the cyber security of some of these products was able to hack into 15 of 16 smart home devices within 20 minutes. When you consider that those devices could include home security cameras, garage doors, and water pumps, its easy to see that these vulnerabilities pose a physical threat to the homes inhabitants.
With so many companies putting these devices on the market, customers have to be extremely careful about which products to purchase, in order to minimize risks. At the moment, the biggest comfort to smart home owners is probably that cyber criminals still seem to be more interested in stealing personal data, including payment information, than messing around with smart home systems. That doesnt mean a smart home is safe from attack, however, especially as more devices come online to join the Internet of Things network.
Cyber Security Improvements
Now that the many security experts have exposed the flaws in smart home security, manufacturers may have greater motivation than ever to invest in improved security measures. Smart home buyers should help encourage this trend by purchasing devices from the companies making an effort to protect their systems from attack. Strong encryption, two-factor authentication, and other security protocols will become increasingly important as the industry grows. Smart security is the next logical step in making smart homes safer, analyzing patterns and alerting the homeowner when anomalies are detected, making it easier to spot illicit activity.
A Growing Market
So, are they worth the risk? Many people think so. Theres no doubt that smart homes will become a big business in the next few years. By 2019, the market is estimated to be worth $115 billion, and many more options will be available to consumers. Though its less secure, most homeowners will want security to be integrated into a single platformmeaning that with one breach, cyber criminals could access all of the homes devices at once, allowing easy access to dataand even physical access to the home.
With this in mind, consumers will have to make the choice on an individual basis: is the convenience worth the risk? Someday, smart home features might be standard, and integrated into the way we live our lives. Until that time, consumers have a difficult decision to make.
