If you relish a convenient life and smarter home, the Internet of Things must have been an integral-part by now. As the communications extend from devices to appliances, IoT networks shall soon become as common as Wi-Fi at our homes.
In fact, following up on a report from Fortune Business, the market shall reach $1.1 trillion by 2026. However, the fact that they are tempting prey for cybercriminals has raised concerns over our readiness to ensure complete security, says Yash Mehta.
Yes, the services providers are doing their bit by improving with every release but how responsible are we? How often are we monitoring the logs? Before you plan to expand and include more nodes, here’s a quick run-through the basics of keeping your IoT networks at home secure, and qualitative.
Start with your router
The router is the first entry point to your in-house network of devices and as per Symantec Data, 75% of IoT attacks begin with the router. You must invest in a router that delivers higher degrees of security and performs more than just running the network. Although most ISPs have begun to address the security vulnerabilities, you should still make sure that the one given to you qualifies for the requirement.
Depending upon the type of neighborhood (if densely packed or not), your ISPs maximum upload and download speed and if the ISP supports any other external modem other than the one they recommend using, a router must be selected.
First things first, change your router’s name. The default name, which is mostly the brand’s name is easily identifiable and does 505 of the job for the infiltrator. Just like the password, give an atypical name that doesn’t hold any literal meaning.
Furthermore, use an encryption method for the home’s Wi-Fi connection. Launch the default IP address 192.168.1.1 In your router settings, look for an encryption option, most commonly WPA2, a type of encryption that provides the third (highest) level of security while exchanging data packets.
Enable two-factor authentication
Two-factor authentication is an additional step of approvals needed to sign-in after passwords. A One Time Password that has a shorter validity is sent to the user via email or SMS. Like most devices, websites, and networks provide an option to enable the 2FA, you must ensure the checks in your IoT network also. Although no one else besides you would be signing-in, it is a great way to get notified whenever an infiltration attempt happens.
Disable Universal Plug and Play (UPnP)
A network of connected devices may not always be great as your private data is at risk of exposure. IoT devices have a feature called Universal Plug and Play that enables each one of them to discover devices around and connect automatically. While this eliminates the hassle of manually connecting on a local network, the feature could put your devices to connect anonymously with unknown networks in the public domain.
Use a VPN
A network of connected devices may not always be great as your private data is at risk of exposure. IoT devices […]
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