The idea for Internet of Things was first proposed in 1999, and the following decades saw the emergence of a new technology which has had a significant impact on how the world works today. Explained simply, Internet of Things is an interconnected network of physical computing devices that are accessible through the internet. With the convergence of wireless technologies, microservices, and internet, IoT has significantly evolved through the years.
The smart revolution has increased the demand for manufacturing smart devices. IoT is still in an emerging phase and ensuring security and privacy is an important issue that must be addressed and resolved. IoT security breaches and ransomware attacks have been overshadowing the headlines lately, and there is a major workforce laboring towards making these devices more secure. The IoT Security Industry was valued at USD x.xx billion in 2017, and it is estimated to grow with a massive CAGR of xx% during the forecast period, reaching a market value of USD xx billion by the year 2022.
Smart devices are taking over the lives of people. They are focused on product output by optimized use of resources. Smart manufacturing provides transparency and scalability. Homes, refrigerators, thermostat, vehicles, baby monitors, medical implants, and even a toothbrush has now become ‘smart’. They are designed to monitor, collect and analyze data. And with this increase in the number of smart devices, the data being collected has also significantly increased, both in volume and range. Use of IoT in healthcare, vehicles, and mobile phones has also increased the amount of private data being generated. It is essential to emphasize the security of data over the security of network. Businesses depend on IoT data for formulating their important business decisions with the help of advanced business analytics solutions. However, in this hurry to get more products out of the door, security is put in the backseat.
IoT security is more challenging than traditional security. There are complex protocols and standards. Network security (holding the highest market share) is the backbone of the IoT ecosystem. Manufacturers are developing various protocols to secure networks, which are responsible for the exchange of data, and are at a higher risk of being attacked. Multiple step IoT authentication, consisting of strong passwords and biometric recognition, is being encouraged. Data is encrypted during transit between IoT edge devices and back-end systems by using standard cryptographic algorithms. IoT security analytics are being invented and implemented to collect, aggregate, monitor, and standardize data to provide actionable reports, and alert when unrecognizable activities are being noticed.
The growing awareness about the benefits of IoT security solutions has led to mergers and acquisitions of cybersecurity startups by large enterprises to secure and strengthen their IoT portfolios and cloud services. Several government organizations have made mandatory regulations for the acceptance of IoT devices with proper security solutions. They are working towards developing a set of standards to be followed when manufacturing IoT devices, making strict approval methods before an IoT device can be launched in the market. Companies are making huge investments in the research and development of machine learning, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics, to provide security solutions to the IoT ecosystem.
North America is the dominant market in the IoT Security industry due to its excessive use of IoT devices across several domains, coupled with the enforcement of regulatory frameworks. However, The Asia Pacific region is a rapidly growing market, owing to the increasing number of business organizations, unregulated use of internet, and a rise in the mobile workforce. The economy is expanding, and Asian countries are experiencing social transformation. Some of the key players, providing significant security solutions are Symantec Corporation, Cisco Systems, Inc., International Business Machines Corporation, RSA Security LLC, Fortinet Inc., and Palo Alto Network.
The IoT market continues to grow, with investments expected to top to almost $1 trillion by 2020, according to IDC. With the rollout of 5G, Ericsson forecasts that the number of cellular IoT connections is expected to reach around 3.5 billion by 2023, and DBS Asian Insights predicts that IoT devices and services will reach an inflection point of 18-20% adoption in 2019 alone.
Security continues to be one of the greatest barriers to IoT adopters in 2019. Insecure components, prevalent malware and shortsighted attempts to apply traditional security measures to IoT networks act as formidable challenges to these adopters. Heeding to this new zephyr, threat actors are also adapting and innovating new attack services and hacking tools that will be more complicated and more difficult to detect and respond to. In accordance, we can anticipate a substantial increase in supply chain attacks, IoT botnets and cryptominers alike.
We predict that device manufacturers will put an increased focus on security in 2019 versus previous years, but the number and scope of attacks will continue to rise. Microsoft reports that more than 90% of consumers want manufacturers to step up their security practices, and 74% would pay more for a product with additional security built in. This demand will drive innovation and an increased adoption of trusted hardware and software systems. It will also force manufactures to adopt and adhere to industry recommendations for data management and privacy, bring about increased awareness of supply chain security management and so forth. Manufacturers will also look to include bug bounty programs and responsible disclosure programs for manufactured and deployed devices to improve the security of their products.