We all are so involved in making a Smart Home for ourselves that we hardly ever pay any attention to the IoT security risks involved in it. As our mobile phones and PCs, these smart devices too are vulnerable to cyber-attacks. So, today we are going to discuss the most vulnerable Smart Home Devices and various IoT risks involved in trying to create a smart home.

Also Read: It’s Raining Smart Home Products at CES

What is IoT?

IoT refers to the ‘Internet of Things’. When various smart devices work in collaboration with each other, they continuously transfer information to each other to function properly. This constant supply of information creates a WEB of its own which is known as the ‘Internet of Things’.

To explain a bit in detail, if you have equipped your Smart Smoke Detector to work with Smart Bulbs so that in an emergency, the lights start blinking automatically. This requires a constant flow of information from your Smart Smoke Detector to Smart Lights. Throw in a couple of smart devices more on the web and it becomes a whole Internet of Things.

IoT Security Risks – Risks Involved in Creating an IoT and using Smart Home Devices

As we saw in the section above, how different smart devices can be involved with each other in the constant flow of information. This constant flow of information requires them to be connected via a Network which gives rise to various IoT risks. If a hacker can intercept and hack the network itself, all the devices and the information that these devices process are in control of the hacker. Now, you can only imagine what the hacker can do with all the information available at his disposal.

Let’s now name a few most Vulnerable Smart Home Devices that you may have at your home:

Here Are The Most Vulnerable Smart Home Devices:

1. Smart Doorbells:

Though Smart Doorbells are generally considered to be safe and useful, they are highly vulnerable to leaking confidential information like Passcodes, Network Passwords, etc. which in turn can threaten your whole network system. Hence, the answer to the question can smart locks be hacked is yes, they can be.

2. Smart Smoke Detectors:

Smart Smoke Detectors can be highly useful as they differentiate between Carbon Monoxide and Smoke and can also trigger various other functions to better secure your home and work environment. However, this requires them to stay connected with the network always which can be intercepted by hackers.

3. Smart Thermostats:

Smart Thermostats are both Environment and Budget Friendly. They can help maintain a reasonable temperature at all times while still maintaining a low energy consumption. But a lot of cyber-security companies have found these thermostats highly vulnerable.

4. Smart Lights:

You wouldn’t think that a device like a Smart Bulb which is controllable by your Mobile phone and which you bought as you wanted to change colors for fun can provide hackers access to all the devices that are connected to your home network, including your phone and PC.

5. Smart Toilets:

Smart Toilets aren’t as popular as other Smart Devices mentioned above. However, it does give us an idea of how far-reaching IoT can be in the coming times and how vulnerable the world is going to be.

So, these are the most common and vulnerable smart home devices that we have seen at our home. Let’s now move forward to see the safety measures that we can employ to prevent attacks on these devices.

Tips to Minimize Risk of IoT Attacks:

All the vulnerabilities that a person can take advantage of the return to the Network connection at our home. Hence, all the prevention techniques are targeted at securing your Network itself.

1. Don’t be Basic with your security:

Don’t be shy to put a Strong Password on your Wi-Fi to better protect your security. Also, don’t put just a basic router for the internet and buy one with a Built-in Firewall to further protect your network.

2. Use a Separate Network:

If you happen to have visitors over very often and you, as a host, give away your Wi-Fi passwords to every other person, you are in big danger. Either share your password with only the family members or just get a separate connection for your smart home devices.

Use a VPN:

Last but the most important step is to employ a VPN on your Router. A VPN employs a whole lot of different techniques to safeguard your data and privacy over the web. For example, A VPN encrypts the data flow that makes it nearly impossible for hackers to get any information out of it. Hence, it is of utmost importance to use a VPN on your Router.

Though there are a lot of VPN solutions available in the market, I suggest using NordVPN to protect all your devices from Cyber-threats.

Also Read: Best VPN Services – VPN Unlimited v/s NordVPN

NordVPN:

NordVPN is one of the most widely used and trusted VPNs of all. It employs industry-leading techs to safeguard user data and Privacy. Some of the most highlighted features of NordVPN are:

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• NordVPN can help promote Anonymity by masking your device’s original IP Address with that of the Router.
• All the Data that you send or receive over the VPN is encrypted with AES 256-Bit Encryption to make the data unusable to anyone except for the intended user.
• NordVPN comes equipped with an Automatic Kill Switch that drops all the working internet connection as soon as it detects a sudden drop in the VPN network.

With all these amazing features and more, NordVPN is one of the most secure VPNs available in the market.

So, this was all from our end on the Internet of Things Risks, Vulnerable Smart Home Devices, Can Smart Devices be hacked, etc. I hope you found the information helpful. If you have any queries, do let us know in the comment section below. Keep visiting Tweak Library for more such tech-related content.

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