Labels will soon let you know how secure your drone is

In the near future, IoT devices in Europe might be labelled with stickers similar to those on domestic appliances, to make it easier for users to understand the security behind them, sources say. The European Commission hopes manufacturers will take security more seriously once the security level of each device is shown in plain sight.

Until then, millions of devices with bad security clutter our workplace, the street and our homes – a smart TV, a fitness bracelet, maybe even a drone. Only recently, a massive DDoS attack was launched through an IoT botnet proving the instability of the devices and making us think twice before we give them full access to our network.

Unfortunately, few users give security an extra thought and, what”s worse, neither have engineers. That is why the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) has come up with a report to show how vulnerable IoT really is and to provide guidelines for developers to create more secure products.

Consumer devices are not the only ones to benefit from IoT innovation, as it spans multiple segments such as healthcare, smart cities and industrial infrastructures. Secure by design and privacy by design are the most important attributes to overcome cyber threats, says CSA.

Interoperability is one of the biggest challenges engineers have to deal with, especially in the medical sector. Healthcare could be one of the industries to gain most benefits from IoT innovation as “pharmacological companies are IoT-enabling pill bottles and researchers are even busy developing implantable diagnostic tools.”

“Given the functionality provided by smart health devices, developing these products securely is critical to safeguarding patients from harm,” reads the report. To avoid attacks and keep a clean network, connected devices have to meet security requirements from the get-go by being developed with safety in mind.