Growing Number of Consumers Expect Internet of Things to Change Connected Homes

The Internet of Things (IoT) is still in its infancy, but manufacturers are speculating that a growing number of people want to enjoy home electronics connected to the Internet, according to a recent survey published by Fortinet.

Sixty-one percent of respondents say a connected home is “extremely likely” to be a reality by 2019.  A whopping 84 percent of survey respondents in China pledged support towards the IoT craze, the report states.

When it comes to IoT security, there are three concerns:  Data loss, malware, and unauthorized access of IoT-connected devices.  Sixty-eight of those surveyed in the U.S. are “extremely concerned” or “somewhat concerned” about data breaches and other security issues stemming from IoT.

Here is what John Maddison, Fortinet VP of Marketing, said in a press statement:

“The Internet of Things promises many benefits to end-users, but also presents grave security and data privacy challenges.  Crossing these hurdles will require clever application of various security technologies, including remove connection authentication, virtual private networks between end-users and their connected home devices, malware and botnet protection, and application security – applied on premises, in the cloud and as an integrated solution by device manufacturers.”

Looking ahead, IoT growth is expected to evolve into a booming industry – research group IDC expects IoT to hit $7.1 trillion by 2020, and companies will need to blend IoT connected home features with strong security and ease-of-use for consumers.

Thank you to Fortinet for providing us with this information

Image courtesy of Digital Trends