Smart Cities & The Internet of Things (IoT)

The threat of automated IoT vulnerability finders is a genuine concern. "Absolutely it is coming," says Anders Fogh, a malware analyst for the German security firm GData. "We are waiting for the vendors to realize that security is relevant. They need a dose of bitter medicine." Other researchers are beginning to work on large scale IoT firmware analysis and automatic n-day mining projects as well, acknowledging a future in which attackers can fully exploit IoT vulnerability.

Discussions about the Internet of Things (IoT) often focus on a “Security vs. Privacy” paradigm. However, last month author Susan Landau emphasized instead that discussions should focus on “Security vs. Security” at a New America event titled Listening In: Cybersecurity in an Insecure Age.

In her same-titled book, Landau’s historical perspective, legislative knowledge, and cyberattack descriptions make a convincing case for the need to secure our data.

She describes how security has matured slowly leading up to today’s strong-encryption found in corporate, government, and military environments.