14. Internet of Things (IoT): Growth, Challenges, and Security

If the escalating rate of system attacks is any measure of system security, we are in for an unprecedented period of system upheaval. Indeed a dangerous future for all of us who have come to depend on computing systems, big and small. We have come to take, as normal, a situation where every the other day, there is a reported system hack and millions of user accounts, containing essential, if not vital personal information, are hacked. With the anticipated phenomenal growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, where our home bread toasters are expected to talk to your mobile phone and the fridge and smart home monitoring devices, we expect a security quagmire soon. All this mayhem is a result of our total dependence on technology, now creeping ever closer into our living and bedrooms. The home front, as the last frontier of defenses, is now the security war front, brought home by the IoT technologies. In this chapter, we are going to explore these technologies, highlight the problematic issues, comment on the ethical implications, and outline the latest security tools and best practices.