In-brief: The Department of Homeland Security is readying a set of security guidelines for Internet of Things device makers and for consumers that it will soon release, according to a senior official.
Internet of Things
VW, Israeli Firm Team on Auto Cyber Security
In-brief: CYMOTIVE is the name of a new joint venture between Volkswagen and three Israeli firms. The new company will develop solutions to secure connected vehicles.
Pretty Much All Consumer Internet of Things Vulnerabilities Are Avoidable
In-brief: A study by the Online Trust Alliance (OTA), a non-profit focused on online trust, put a figure on how many consumer security vulnerabilities could have been easily avoided. That figure: 100 percent. That’s right…every single one. We’ve been reporting about the low-hanging fruit of vulnerabilities in consumer-focused connected devices for a long time. Years, in fact. Whether the device is a home surveillance camera or a “smart TV” or Bluetooth [fill in the blank], trivial and (often) exploitable security holes are often part of the package. Now a study by the Online Trust Alliance (OTA), a non-profit focused on online trust, put a figure on how many consumer security vulnerabilities could have been easily avoided. That figure: 100 percent. That’s right…every single one. OTA did a survey of vulnerabilities in consumer facing IoT devices between November 2015 and July 2016 and found that all of them could have been avoided had device manufacturers and developers […]
PCI Updates Security Guidance with Focus on Firmware
In-brief: The Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI Council) is raising the bar for the security of point of sale systems, with a big focus on the software (or “firmware”) that runs those systems.
Justice Dept. studying national security threats of Internet of Things devices
Reuters is reporting that the U.S. Justice Department has formed a threat analysis team to study potential national security challenges posed by self-driving cars, medical devices and other Internet-connected tools. The new group’s goal is to secure the so-called “internet of things” from exploitation by “terrorist threats” and by others who might try to hack devices to cause loss of life or achieve political or economic gain, according to Assistant Attorney General John Carlin, head of the Justice Department’s national security division. The impetus for the team, which has been informally active for about six months, was an understanding that the internet is vulnerable to cyber attacks partly because it was not designed with security in mind, Carlin told Reuters, after announcing the group on Thursday at the Intelligence and National Security Alliance conference in Washington. Source: Justice Dept. group studying national security threats of internet-linked devices
