2018 ushered in serious doubts and vulnerabilities in IoT security. The Meltdown and Spectre bugs along with embedded spy threats from the Chinese in Apple’s and Google’s supply chain were major stories. And a handful of companies¸ including NanoLock¸ answered the call to provide better IoT security solutions. While we are not sure what major flaws and security vulnerabilities will be discovered in 2019¸ we predict several key trends in the IoT security market¸ including:
Flash Providers will Aggressively Enter the IoT Security Market
The Leading flash vendors like Winbond and others are realizing there is an excellent opportunity to become major players in the IoT security industry¸ as protecting IoT device flash memory has never been more important. These vendors will build their own solutions or likely partner with IoT security experts to secure devices¸ protect FOTA updates and manage these devices from flash to cloud.
Managing IoT Devices will be Just as Important as Securing IoT Devices
2018 saw major improvements to securing IoT devices with several vendors introducing solutions to lock down devices and secure them from nefarious hackers. In 2019¸ IoT security management will become a major trend¸ as companies look to secure and manage devices to ease customer concerns and ensure IoT devices are safe. And¸ managing IoT devices will create a profitable revenue stream for companies that master the practice.
Telcos and Enterprises will Increase Revenue by Securely Managing IoT Devices
As telcos and enterprises shore up their IoT devices and build ironclad defenses around them to block hacker infiltration¸ managing these devices will provide a new revenue stream. Mobile device management is currently centered around phones and tablets¸ but not tailored to the vast amount of IoT devices with limited CPU power. The market is wide open for telcos¸ enterprises and cloud companies to increase revenue by ensuring not only the protection of these devices¸ but the management capabilities. After all¸ their customers will demand it and these companies must develop strategies around securely and successfully managing the growing IoT landscape.
Automotive and Industrial Companies will Invest More in Protecting ECU/MCUs with Trusted Management and Secured Updates
Automotive and Industrial companies will be under pressure to secure electronic control units (ECUs) and industrial microcontrollers units (MCUs). The need for trusted management and secure updates is essential in the automotive industry as cars become more connected and have more software¸ and hacking into cars’ ECUs can have deadly consequences. As the automotive industry ramps up to deliver autonomous vehicles¸ trusted management and especially secure updates will be critical.
Industrial companies have invested millions of dollars in the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)¸ and have realized they need to protect this investment by securing IIoT equipment¸ which is vulnerable to hackers. More industrial companies will look to purchase hardware and software management solutions to protect their investments and thwart hackers.
We’ll keep a close eye on these and other trends in the IoT security space in 2019. Keep up to date on the latest trends by signing up for our newsletter¸ “The IoT Lockdown¸” follow us on Twitter @NanoLockSec or become a follower on LinkedIn
