A new Kaspersky study found that 61% of companies are already using IoT platforms despite the significant security risks that accompany their adoption. The company's new report, titled "With Superpower Comes Great Responsibility: Benefits and Challenges of IoT in Business," shows that the use of business IoT platforms is increasing year-on-year in almost all industries. According to Kaspersky, the most significant growth was observed in the hotel industry (from 53% in 2018 to 63% in 2019), healthcare (from 56% to 66%) and finance (from 60% to 68%). However, since last year, the IT and Telecom (71%) and Finance (68%) sectors have embraced IoT more than any other vertical. IoT platforms currently have many use cases, including smart cities, networking, metering, transportation, and logistics, as well as automated manufacturing and connected heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC).
IoT security risks
The growth in the use of IoT has not been discouraged despite the high potential for cybersecurity risks and incidents. Kaspersky's survey shows that 28% of companies using IoT platforms reported experiencing incidents involving non-computer devices in the past year. These incidents can be critical as smart devices and sensors can collect terabytes of data, including sensitive information such as business data or personal customer information. Furthermore, IoT platforms can be connected to critical systems, such as traffic, energy or transport processes, making it essential to guarantee their continuity and integrity. To safely take advantage of the features and benefits of IoT platforms, Kaspersky recommends that organizations assess the security status of a device prior to deployment, perform regular security audits, ''Establish procedures for obtaining information about software vulnerabilities and applications, to implement cybersecurity solutions, and to use IoT devices that are secure by design. Grigory Sizov, head of the KasperskyOS KasperskyOS Business Unit, provided additional information on the latest report from the cybersecurity company, stating: “IoT is a powerful catalyst for business, but to reap the benefits, organizations need to do a lot of work. effort. It requires dedicated business processes, as well as expertise, to ensure its effective implementation. As the survey shows, cybersecurity is also an issue that needs to be addressed in the IoT space, in terms of equipment security, technical and organizational guarantees, and data privacy, as well as other factors. It is important to consider security at an early stage of IoT deployment and we want to help our customers achieve this task by developing IoT security solutions and expertise within Kaspersky. "