WHITEPAPER

THE INTERNET OF
THINGS AT HOME
 THE INTERNET OF THINGS AT HOME WHITEPAPER
THE INTERNET OF THINGS AT HOME:
ARE YOU PROTECTED?
The Internet of Things—which describes the push to
make everything from toasters and refrigerators to
lamps and thermostats connected to the internet—is
now the norm for homes. Between smart TVs, countless
mobile devices owned by both family and guests,
wearables and so much more, there are now dozens
of IP addresses in a typical house. It’s come to a point
that, from an IT perspective, homes now have almost
as much internet-connected technology in them as the
average small office.
However, the IoT and connected home currently have a
major flaw: lackluster security. Hackers love going after
IoT devices, especially ones inside the home. Between
issues with the connected objects plus poor network
security, this is a ripe target for cybercriminals.
CURRENT STATE OF IOT AND ITS
RISKS
IoT is no longer a trend: it is a way of life. According to
Gartner research, 14.2 billion connected things will be in
use worldwide in 2019, reaching 25 billion by 2025.1 The
consumer sector is currently leading the way, accounting
for more than 60 percent of all connected items in that
2
year. According to Intel, the average household has ten
connected devices, rising to 50 by 2020.2 Unfortunately,
those consumer IoT devices are often an easy target
for hackers, as most consumers do not understand
the impact these devices can have on their data and
networks if they are breached. Lack of a good password
combined with unpatched vulnerabilities contribute to
87% of all IoT attacks.3
Many are familiar with the Mirai botnet attack in 2016
that took down websites like Etsy, GitHub, Netflix,
Twitter and others. Devices that were running out-of-
date firmware and did not change default passwords
and usernames were taken over by the malicious code.
Enterprises are not the only target; schools and homes
with limited security are a target as well. In 2017, Verizon
Wireless released a report4 that included an unnamed
university that became the subject of an IoT device
attack. More than 5,000 discrete systems were found to
be making hundreds of DNS lookups every 15 minutes.
The botnet spread via brute force attack to break through
weak passwords on IoT devices.5
“The underlying problem is that many IoT manufacturers
are primarily designing their devices for functionality
and proper security testing often takes a back seat,” the
Verizon Wireless report states.
 THE INTERNET OF THINGS AT HOME WHITEPAPER
Further compounding this issue is that many home
routers are not secure, giving cybercriminals another
avenue through which to exploit IoT hardware. “If a router
is sold at [an electronics chain], you don’t want to buy it,”
said independent computer consultant Michael Horowitz.
“If your router is given to you by your internet service
provider [ISP], you don’t want to use it either, because
they give away millions of them, and that makes them a
prime target both for spy agencies and bad guys.”6
HOW TO ACTUALLY SECURE THE IOT
Thanks to IoT, the connected home is now a reality.
However, homeowners, unlike business owners, don’t
have IT experts on staff. This means that network
oversight and security falls on their shoulders. 54% of
IoT device owners do not use a third-party security tool
to protect their devices from outside threats – and more
than a third (35%) don’t change the default password
on their devices, leaving them vulnerable to attacks.7
IoT devices—as well as other computing devices like
tablets, laptops and smartphones—all connect to
the Internet via the Wi-Fi router. Unfortunately, Wi-Fi
routers weren’t designed primarily with security
in mind. In fact, security usually comes in a distant
second or third to performance and range. Wi-Fi router
manufacturers spend their R&D dollars on improving
hardware rather than software, leaving consumers
with a choice between bad and awful when it comes
to security and network visibility.
Fortunately, Untangle can help.
Bringing state-of-the-art network
device discovery, Internet traffic
visibility and security to the
SMB market for years, Untangle
has now introduced its same
award-winning NG Firewall
solution to the small office/home
office (SOHO) market with its
appliances, firmware option and
HomePro license.
3
Untangle, Inc.
100 W. San Fernando St., Ste. 565
San Jose, CA 95113
www.untangle.com
ABOUT US
Untangle is an innovator in cybersecurity for
the below-enterprise market, safeguarding
people’s digital lives at home, work and
on-the-go. Untangle’s integrated suite of
software and appliances provides enterprise-
grade capabilities and consumer- oriented
simplicity, bringing a new generation of
smart security to homes and small-to-mid-
sized businesses. Untangle’s award-winning
network security solutions are trusted by over
400,000 customers, protecting nearly 5 million
people, their computers and networks around
the world.
For sales information, please contact us by
phone in the US at +1 (866) 233-2296 or via
e-mail at sales@untangle.com.
©2019 Untangle, Inc. All rights reserved. Untangle and the Untangle logo are
registered marks or trademarks of Untangle, Inc. All other company or product
names are the property of their respective owners.
SOURCES
1 https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2018-11-07-
gartner-identifies-top-10-strategic-iot-technologies-and-trends
2 https://cio.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/internet-of-
things/households-have-10-connected-devices-now-will-rise-to-50-
by-2020/53765773
3 https://s3-eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/evermade-fsecure-assets/wp-
content/uploads/2019/04/01094545/IoT-Threat-Landscape.pdf
4 http://www.verizonenterprise.com/resources/reports/rp_data-breach-
digest-2017-sneak-peek_xg_en.pdf
5 http://www.zdnet.com/article/5-nightmarish-attacks-that-show-the-
risks-of-iot-security/
6 https://www.tomsguide.com/us/home-router-security,news-19245.html
7 http://www.information-age.com/internet-things-security-
crisis-123470475/