How Scary the Internet of Things (IOT), will be without Block Chain or Tangle Technology

Bittersweet convenience

                Abstract

As technology continues to produce modern solutions to improve the quality of life for individuals, each individual must look at the big picture before diving into the abyss. Smart homes can revolutionize the human experience; giving people back one of their most precious resources, time. Innovation has always been on the forefront of human progress, and this is no exception. However, with the innovation and convenience that having a smart home affords you, it may not be worth the security risk. There are some options to mitigate those risks available now, and these may be improved upon in the future. But currently although technology exists to have a smart home, I recommend waiting for greater security measures before investing in such a costly technology. Precisely we must wait until the Block Chain or IOTA’s Tangle technology is utilized to integrate the IOT safely.

By Francis Aiello
As the Internet of things (IOT) grows in popularity, technology companies continue to produce niche devices meant to upgrade a house into a “Smart Home”. While these devices can add some convenience and peace of mind, they also bring potential vulnerability into your home. It may be a bit paranoid to assume this, but each of these home convenience devices can bring more security risk than the peace of mind they are intended to deliver: smart locks that you can control from your smart phone, security cameras that stream live video from inside your house to your smart phone, even a speaker that listens for verbal commands. Each of these devices that use a web based technology intended to make your life easier, can hand over your privacy and security to criminals. With the small benefit of some convenience to the homeowner, the criminals themselves might have the most to gain with these new devices. Most likely, the only people who will use these devices are those with sufficient internet security knowledge like, internet security and IT professionals. Some of the ways that this will change in the future may include home security companies adding a monitor for cyber-attacks or we could change the early education system to incorporate internet security as regular curriculum.
We live in a time when people holding high office and are supposedly trained to guard their documents can’t seem to keep their emails secure. In this age of cyberterrorism where even kingpins of the technology industry like Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and the director of the FBI James Comey place tape over their webcams, (Kaste, 2016), (Hern, 2016), is it really a smart idea from average joes/janes, to install web cameras and speaker/microphones in their homes? It seems it is quite simple for a hacker to gain control of a webcam “Without wishing to scare you, the short answer is: it’s very easy for anyone to view your webcam”. (Bruce, 2014). If the webcam uses the same technology as the smart door lock, then it is safe to say it is just as easy for a hacker to see if your door is locked or even have the ability unlock it remotely. For the convenience of having a remote door lock control, you are now exposed to having your door opened by someone else. I would equate this to having a fake rock with a spare key in front of your door, it seems convenient and safe enough but for anyone who knows what they are looking for it is as good as leaving your door unlocked.
Physical intrusion is scary but there are other kinds of intrusion that can be just as scary. With criminals seeing and listening into your house, they can: view private documents, listen to private conversations, and see private actions. All of these can be potentially saved for nefarious purposes. Evil purposes like: blackmail, identity theft, credit card cloning and even just sell the information to another criminal for a quick buck. The IOT is supposed to make our lives easier, but anyone who has fallen victim to identity theft will find live anything but easy. I personally have fallen victim to identity theft and I can say from direct personal experience, resolving the issues it causes and recovering from these attacks can be a daunting process. Although there will never be a day when we are completely safe there may be a day when these devices are less vulnerable. “Imagine a scenario in which would-be burglars no longer have to walk around looking for opportunities. All they have to do is monitor your alarm or CCTV to identify your daily pattern, then they arrive while you are away, turn the security systems off and tell the environment systems to open a window — assuming they don’t just tell the front door to unlock itself” (Kenny, 2016).
In order for these smart home niche devices to be installed in the majority of homes the way toasters and coffee makers are, consumers must be convinced that by buying these devices they are not opening a back door for criminals to come in. One was to do this is education; the people must be educated on how to protect their home network. Now that is not to suggest that the manufactures should send them to a training class, but they should definitely put some security suggestions in the owner’s manual at the least. Education as a whole needs to be updated to include internet security, not necessarily to the level of a security professional, but enough that it prepares people for the world in which they are living. I believe this to be the best solution as we continue to move further into this digital era, but it is not the only solution.
Business opportunities continue to grow and change around tech devices as well as lifestyles and even the law. While manufactures continue to pump out these smart home devices, cyber security courses are being created and sold along with them. There is also security software being created to assist with the problems. I suspect the next phase in security will be some sort of home network monitoring service. Although 24/7 monitoring seems like a full proof solution, (service cost notwithstanding), it is still not fool proof. What is to stop the bad guys from working as the good guys collecting information that is sensitive?
Many things are affected by changes in technology, such as the very laws that govern us. With the invention of the internet, several laws have had to be created to prevent people from taking advantage of their knowledge such as “18 U.S. Code § 1030 - Fraud and related activity in connection with computers”. As the IOT continue to grow in popularity, more laws will have to be created and or old laws tweaked to account for the wider scope of possibilities. For example, many jobs that deal with people’s privacy, such as insurance companies or healthcare workers, require background checks for the employees. However, even with a background check when you place a person in a position where they can easily steal large sums of money there is no background check that can tell you if a person will steal it or not.
Convenience provided by technology has always been a double edged sword, but in many cases the convenience has outweighed the risks. There is definitely merit in pursuing these technologies as they can improve our lifestyle, improve our productivity, even enrich our lives. Picture a home that technologically sophisticated with all of the bells and whistles, and let’s examine a day living with such sophistication. You wake up from the sound of your alarm clock, which set itself after syncing to your work calendar. Your coffee pot began brewing you coffee moments before your alarm clock went off, while simultaneously your house temperature control, water temperature control and radio channel preferences are all adjusted for your morning routine. As you exit the shower your wardrobe makes clothing recommendations based on the weather forecast. As you finish your coffee, you ask your home digital assistant to start your car, it responds with a reminder to put the trash can to the curb as it starts your car. Just as your walking out of the house you receive a phone call and forget to lock your front door. Your car GPS chooses the route with the least amount of traffic and your favorite station is already playing. Your car informs you that your door is not locked, and requests permission to lock it for you. Your coffee pot detects your cars proximity to the house and shuts itself off. While you are away, the neighbor’s dog pees in your yard and your security cameras snap pictures of it for your record. The mail man delivers a package of some value that you are expecting, so your front door opens and your home assistant asks him to place it inside, (all after a facial recognition check of course). Your lawn care company arrives for it’s by monthly lawn care, and one of the workers accidentally scratches your motorcycle, the security camera captures the incident for your review as well. You go out to the bar and after a night of drinking your vehicle refuses to start due to your condition and calls you a cab. You arrive home without your keys and are able to get in using your smart door lock. You fall asleep on the couch in front of the instead of in your bed but your personal assistant turns the TV volume up in the morning to wake you so you will not be late for work.
I know that any of these devices could be utilized safe from hackers if we wait for the Crypto companies to use their Block Chain technology (The un-hackable software behind Bitcoin) to implement these IOT devices.
All of the above is meant to give you back the most precious resource that there is, and that is time. “Time itself is far more valuable than money, fame, possessions, etc”. (Singer, 2007) But where does it end? Where do we draw the line? Do we want cars making decisions for us? Some might draw parallels with Skynet from, “Terminator”, or VIKI from “I-Robot”. The serious question that I pose is to what end? How much technology is too much? Is it really worth it? I say no. I said no when an auto insurance company wanted to put a tracker in my car to see how I drive and I am saying no now.
Cost of purchase and cost of repair is another lynchpin of this whole concept. Sure turning your house into a smart home using these niche devices may sound perfect and look affordable on paper but with sophistication comes complication. Complication comes with cost, a cost to install and set up, and a cost to repair upon failure. And when complicated systems fail, it might take some time for even a talented technician to resolve the issue. Even further, these automated systems might fail in ways that cause unforseen issues. What if you have an alarm sensor that fails and your house calls the police for no good reason, will that home owner be charged for misusing 911, or will the security manufacturer be charged for all the cases in when this happens?
In conclusion I believe that even though the technology exists presently to make smart homes, it is still a long way away from becoming a common household item. Before this comes to fruition, we need education, legislation and increased security measures, as well as lower cost and an overall sense of trust and stability in the products themselves. However now that Block Chain Technology can make all of this work safely, we now have a solution that works and the IOT can be realized.

Bibliography
Bruce, J. (2014, may 21). MUO. Retrieved from Makeuseof.com: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-easy-is-it-for-someone-to-hack-your-webcam/
Hern, A. (2016, June 22). The Guardian. Retrieved from theguardian.com: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jun/22/mark-zuckerberg-tape-webcam-microphone-facebook
Kaste, M. (2016, april 8). the two-way breaking news from NPR. Retrieved from NPR news: http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/04/08/473548674/why-the-fbi-director-puts-tape-over-his-webcam
Kenny, G. (2016, May 17). securityintelligence.com. Retrieved from Security Intelligence: https://securityintelligence.com/smart-homes-need-smart-security/
Singer, A. (2007, November 23). the future buzz. Retrieved from thefuturebuzz.com: http://thefuturebuzz.com/2007/11/23/time-the-most-precious-resource/