Light bulb moment shows the need for IoT security
1 min read
The news that someone has hacked an internet enabled light bulb isn't exactly something we'd hold the front page for, but it does underline the importance of security in the burgeoning Internet of Things (IoT).
As we noted in the Cover Story of our 24 June issue, the IoT is underpinned by three concepts – trust, security and authentication. Hacking a light bulb – a seemingly trivial event – shows that two of those concepts were missing from that system design, although the hacking organisation did have to work hard to get in.
Intelligent light bulbs are at the furthest point in the electrical grid but are nonetheless connected devices with an IP address. If you can find a way into that system, it may give the dedicated troublemaker an opportunity to work their way closer to the centre. If they can get that far, they could have the opportunity to control power generation or, in the worst case, shut it down and make it hard for people to get it started again.
Will it happen? Probably not. Could it happen? Apparently so.
