Over the years IT providers have become the ‘gatekeepers’ of technology, but in the modern world and with the introduction of IoT things have begun to change; the ease of installation of IoT means that it may bypass typical IT security policies. In years past the IT department was dominant as the sole custodian of all things tech; but now business processes are driving the need for IoT technologies to solve specific problems, as a result, IT security might not be enforced leading to a IoT security risk.
Not that long ago, one of my clients told me point blank when discussing IT Security: ‘ok, this sounds like overkill. I am not big on over securing things and over-controlling.’ when discussing new security measures.
IoT and IT has become so ubiquitous that smaller clients introduce a new LOB application in a piecemeal manner, with no analysis on how these new IoT pieces create new security risks especially when data begins being shared between multiple “tings”. These new systems are brought in to resolve specific needs throughout the organization. The reality is, there is a near-infinite number of endpoints and configurations, identifying all the vulnerabilities becomes an exceptionally difficult thing to do. Now IT security becomes of a game of whack-a-mole, and eventually, you will lose.
The need for any C-level executives is not only to organize the power and opportunities that IT represents but to understand and take action to centralize the oversight of both IoT and IT. These two areas need to be taken out of their individual silos and given the detailed attention they require. It’s important to recognize that areas of expertise within your resident IT may not include specialized knowledge to manage IoT. IoT is complex, often carrying more integration and interaction than the traditional IT systems, and a misconfiguration can lead to data leakage or breaches that will make you liable.
While some IoT is as simple as connecting it to the network much of it isn’t simple out of the box technology. Interconnections between systems provide value for IoT but a lack of security will lead to significant liabilities. Having IoT audited and review by your qualified IT department is a crucial step to ensuring the gains made with IoT are not done at the expense of a larger security and liability risk.
IT and IoT are the centre of most modern organizations, leading to new strategic and efficiencies that could never have been imagined ten and twenty years ago.
Managed Service Providers who focus on IoT technology can bring specialized knowledge that your in house IT-Department simply does not have, using their experience can bring a big-picture approach to your IoT deployment.
However, you choose to proceed, know that IoT is a technology that can lead to an organization that is more dynamically able to respond to an external change in the commercial, operational and working environments. This leads o higher efficiency, increased revenue and quality customer service, the improvement in productivity easily justifies the new learning curve of these technologies.
Please remember, with all this new data and the benefits they bring its important that data protection and operational security are brought along for the ride.
Don’t let a IoT security risks harm your organization.
