Most businesses have a grip on the obvious…tablets, computers and phones are usually secured and hard for hackers to access.

However, we’re encouraging our clients to think a little outside the box to keep their entire network secure.

Advancements in technology over the last 5 years have been incredible, if not slightly intrusive and potentially with little value for the end user at this stage. Let’s use dishwashers as an example. If you have a modern, high-spec machine then it is likely that it has a wi-fi connection and is connected to the internet of things (IoT). You may or may not know this, but it is a fact that increasingly home appliances are connected to the internet of things, to help manufactures learn more about consumer behaviour and also to monitor faults. Some machines even have the capacity to sync with other household appliances – think of a house where your dishwasher is triggered to begin one hour before you wake up, via your mobile phone alarm, so you have clean dishes ready for breakfast and once complete your dishwasher sends a message to your coffee machine to start brewing.

The IoT in a positive sense has been credited with streamlining smart city planning around the world (see below) as well as day to day connectivity, such as allowing devices to talk to one another; for example, the ability for your Google calendar to sync with your in-car satellite navigation system autonomously to get you to a meeting on time, well, in theory at least. Forbes have estimated that by 2020 there will be some 26 billion devices connected to the IoT.

 

You might think, great, but why should I be concerned?

 

The answer is simple – these appliances, devices and luxuries often provide an unprotected entry point to your network. The best example of this was a recent hack of a casino’s network via their fish tank thermometer. Once access to the network was obtained the hackers were able to access the casino’s high-roller database (a list of their largest spending clients). The full story is contained here > https://www.businessinsider.com.au/hackers-stole-a-casinos-database-through-a-thermometer-in-the-lobby-fish-tank-2018-4?r=US&IR=T

Our advice is not to avoid these new technologies – quite the opposite, in fact. We want you to use and embrace these new powerful tools to help to grow your business. We continue to streamline our own workplace by bringing in new efficiencies which connected devices assist. What we do insist, however, is that our clients entire networks, as well as the end points (the devices in their employees hands) are also secure.

We will never be able to live in a world where hacks are completely impossible, but what Anderson Morgan do is work hard each day to learn about new technologies, factoring in their benefits and also potential risks to our clients. Generally we recommend both network and endpoint protection which has been created by world-leading cyber security company, Sophos. From here, our managed service clients receive round-the-clock monitoring from our team to ensure that devices and network entry points are kept air tight. That’s how we have been able to ensure that our clients are never held back by technology.

If you’re unsure of how your business can embrace the IoT – then we recommend a consultation with a member of our team. We can help to safely integrate your systems and allow your business to run efficiently – it could save you money.

If you’d like to dive in and talk to our team about securing your network, then we’d be delighted to catch up. We will provide you with a report which will assess your current security level vs industry standard and also check that your business has all of the cyber security practices put in place that it needs to obtain cyber security insurance.