Routers and IoT devices need to be more secure

F-Secure’s Connected Home Security integrates network and cloud security capabilities, router security and endpoint protection into a single, simple experience for end users. It leverages the capabilities in F-Secure SENSE – a secure WiFi router that protects against malware, phishing and online tracking, and secures smart devices against cyber attacks. F-Secure has offered its SENSE router for almost a year and is now answering the call of router makers and operators by featuring SENSE’s software in its Connected Home Security solution as a software development kit (SDK).

F-Secure’s Connected Home Security solution allows router makers and operators to embed the SENSE SDK into their own routers, making it quick and easy to deploy SENSE’s security capabilities to a large user base. The offering can also include endpoint security and other solutions so that operators can customise their own services with additional features like Family Rules, which lets parents establish healthy online boundaries for kids.

“Countless numbers of new connected devices are coming online every single day, and operators and router manufacturers have a tremendous opportunity to help secure those devices,” said Antero Norkio, F-Secure Vice President of Product Management. “To ensure our partners can tap into this opportunity, we designed the Connected Home Security solution. Not only do we support our partners integrating SENSE features with their chosen router, we also orchestrate a seamless user experience between router security and protecting consumers on the move using our endpoint protection products.”

According to a recent report from Gartner: “By 2021, there will be over 15 billion connected devices in users' homes worldwide, up from 4.8 billion today.” Gartner’s report also finds that: “By 2021 more than 75% of connected home devices will be leveraged in distributed denial of service (DDoS) or IoT botnet attacks, up from 40% today.”

And consumers are paying attention to these security issues. In a recent F-Secure survey, nearly half of respondents admitted they’ve chosen not to buy new connected devices due to security and privacy concerns: 46% said they have not purchased a connected device due to security concerns, and 48% said they have not purchased an ‘intelligent’ device due to concerns about the amount of personal data it may leak.

F-Secure’s Connected Home Security offering can also include security assessments of an operator’s or router manufacturer’s software and hardware components. According to F-Secure’s Head of Hardware Security Andrea Barisani, securing the connected home needs to start with the widely used but rarely secured routers.

“Routers are one of the most common internet-connected devices in people’s homes, but they’re not always built with security in mind. Our hardware security team has extensive experience in testing small office and home routers, and every single time, we have been successful in breaking, and ultimately improving, their security,” said Barisani. “Building a connected home with an insecure router is like building on quicksand, and that is something that is going to have to change if we want smart homes to be secure.”