Smart Devices are Undermining Your Privacy

In a time when Internet connectivity is so important, manufacturers have met this demand by creating products that feature the ability to connect to apps or other Internet-based dashboards. Unfortunately for users, there is a lot that can go wrong when organizational practices don’t do enough to protect their customer’s privacy; or, simply look to exploit it. Let’s take a look at how the smart devices you depend on can be undermining your family’s privacy.

The Unseen Data Collectors in Your Environment

The very features that make smart devices smart are what make them a privacy risk. Understanding these risks is the first step toward mitigating them. Here are some threats these devices pose to personal privacy.

• Eavesdropping toys – Many smart toys come equipped with microphones and voice recognition to interact with children. These conversations, which can capture sensitive personal details about your family and business, are often recorded and stored on company servers. Deliberately vague terms of service agreements might give manufacturers broad rights to use this data, and security flaws can expose these recordings to hackers.
• Data-hungry gadgets – Your fitness tracker monitors your health metrics. Your smart speaker logs your commands and preferences. In a business context, smart sensors might track movement patterns and resource usage. Individually, these data points might seem minor; but when aggregated, they create a detailed profile of personal habits and professional operations that can be sold to advertisers or, far worse, stolen by malicious parties since much of this data isn’t subject to strict security mandates.
• Appliance spies – That new smart TV in the conference room is likely tracking viewing habits and app usage. The smart coffee maker in the breakroom might be sending data about consumption patterns back to the manufacturer. The primary concern is the frequent lack of transparency regarding what data is being collected, how it is being stored, and with whom it is being shared.

The Weakest Link in Your Digital Defense Structure

Did you know that the first Internet-connected appliance—a toaster from 1990—was just seen as a relative novelty? Today, billions of Internet of Things (IoT) devices are online, and security is often an afterthought in their design and production. In fact, this oversight creates significant vulnerabilities for any organization that uses them. Some of the most common security flaws include:

• Default passwords – Many devices are shipped with simple, easy-to-guess (and readily available) default passwords that users and even IT departments can overlook, creating an open door for intruders.
• Lack of encryption – Not all data transmitted from your smart devices is encrypted. Unencrypted data can be intercepted and read by anyone with access to your network, exposing sensitive personal or business information.
• Infrequent or nonexistent updates – Manufacturers don’t always provide regular software updates to patch security holes. Each unpatched device on your network is a potential entry point, leaving your entire organization perpetually vulnerable to attack.

Taking Control of Your Connected Workplace

You don’t have to shun innovation to maintain security. By being proactive, you can enjoy the benefits of smart technology while minimizing the risks. For businesses, however, managing an entire network of smart devices—from the front office to the factory floor—can be a complex and convoluted task. That’s where a proactive approach to technology management becomes crucial.

At White Mountain IT Services, we help organizations secure their networks and protect their sensitive data from the threat landscape surrounding IoT. We can help you implement best practices, from securing your network with robust firewalls to managing device updates and educating your employees on safe usage policies.

Are you interested in learning how to protect your business from the privacy risks of smart technology? Contact the experts at White Mountain IT Services today at (603) 889-0800 to schedule a consultation.