When the Smart Office Creates Stupid Security Problems

Have you ever considered investing in smart technology for your office? We’re talking, of course, about the smart appliances, lights, thermostats, and so on, all of which make your office feel like you stepped into a sci-fi movie. As IT experts, it would be wrong for us to let you implement all these shiny new solutions without considering the security implications.

Our question to you is this: are you willing to leave glaring security weaknesses in your infrastructure for the sake of being considered “high-tech?” We hope the answer is an emphatic “no.”

Your Attack Surface Explodes

Here’s a sobering thought: every new smart device you add to your network, whether that’s the fancy new water cooler, the digital dashboard, or the sensors that help you track inventory, is a potential security problem waiting to happen.

These devices add additional endpoints that hackers can exploit to infiltrate your network. This is what we mean by an exploding attack surface; the number of security issues multiplies by every single Internet of Things device you add. Furthermore, these IoT devices don’t have the powerful security measures in place that you expect and need, making them more vulnerable than anything else on your infrastructure.

So before you decide you need that smart toaster, ask yourself if it’s worth the security issues it could potentially invite.

Data Could Be At Risk

Depending on the device, your smart office could be collecting vast amounts of data that a hacker could find valuable (and what your employees might deem an invasion of privacy).

For example, a smart thermostat that can track when people are in the office or a motion sensor that can monitor foot traffic or habits can be somewhat invasive, to say the least. Voice assistants could be passively listening for the wake-up word so they can be useful, too. Then there’s the larger, more important devices on the network, the kind that can cause a lot of damage or harvest a lot of data depending on the context.

For example, a cybercriminal could gather data on who is actually in the office and when, giving them the ability to physically invade your office when it’s unlikely to be guarded.

Piecemealing a Solution Together

The worst thing you can do with your network security is cobble together some semblance of a security infrastructure.

When you don’t have centralized security keeping everything in check, you get a chaotic and insecure network. You might have five different portals, all for different services or devices. This lack of centralized oversight and management creates issues that are hard to shore up, and it only serves to make vulnerabilities that much more of a threat.

So, what’s the solution?

While smart devices aren’t going away, we recommend smart and intentional implementation to solve critical issues with your business operations. If the cool new toy doesn’t solve a problem, weigh its value against the potential security issues it could bring with it. If you need help with this process, be sure to contact SouthBridge Consulting LLC at (281) 816-6430.