Russia and China were snooping your IoT device

Why security during the Internet of Things revolution is paramount.

In March, Forbes published an article written by tech journalist Aaron Tilley that reported on data leakage from a popular smart home, IoT device (Forbes.com Article). Allegedly, data packets were leaking from consumers devices to unknown data centers in China and later discovered, Russia. Aaron reported that, “unknown to even the company, tiny packets of audio data were also being routed to a server in China run by Chinese internet giant Baidu at seemingly random intervals.” Evidently, this data proved to pose no significant risk to the end user’s privacy. The company released a patch to correct all problemed devices.

Although this may seem like an open and shut case of a bug being worked through on some new tech gadget, it highlights security concerns people have during the IoT revolution. Most people wonder: “Will my privacy be protected as more and more devices peer into my daily routine?”

What’s important to note in this conversation is the role that security plays. Consumers must be absolutely certain that their networking equipment is functioning with the best cyber security that modern tech can produce. This is especially true in the case of the smart home.

To read more about security issues, read: Is Safe Home Internet Possible?