IoT Security Issues, Challenges, and Solutions to Protect Your Device

In the age of technology, the development of IoT devices and software is paralleled by the rise of malware and security threats. When deploying IoT solutions, you need to ensure consumer IoT security by safeguarding sensitive information from unauthorized access.

Did you know that, according to a recent Keyfactor and Vanson Bourne's report, 97% of businesses struggle to secure their IoT and connected devices? To tackle this growing challenge, companies plan to boost their IoT device security budgets, with an anticipated increase of 45% over the next five years.

In this article, we’ll examine the key IoT security challenges you should be aware of and explore potential solutions to address them during the project development phase, all while avoiding overspending.

❓ What Is IoT Security?

IoT security recommendations refer to the framework, instruments, and procedures developed to keep connected devices and Internet of Things networks safe from malefactors and cyberattacks.

Network-level security involves safeguarding the devices, the data they transmit and store, and their connections to networks, including low power IoT networks. This ensures that IoT systems operate with integrity, confidentiality, and availability.

Securing IoT devices is crucial for safeguarding sensitive data, appliances, and overall well-being, especially given the growing IoT data security issues today. To build a trustworthy product and ensure the highest level of security, you should focus on the following key issues:

1. Identification
2. Authentication
3. Encryption
4. Heterogeneity

Let’s explore the key security challenges and how to address them.

🔎 Identification of IoT Devices

With the rapid development and prototyping in IoT, identification issues often arise — it can be challenging to determine whether a device is malicious or "friendly." To distinguish between them, you should implement a robust identification system.

In the IoT ecosystem, there are essentially two categories: identifiers and entities to be identified. The key to a successful identification process lies in securing the identifier, not the entity itself. This is where security challenges for IoT devices come into play. IoT security relies on whether the identifier is trustworthy and protected from tampering by third parties.

Therefore, to ensure safe identification, you should choose a highly secure system that can serve as the "identifier" and prevent the connection of unsecured devices.

How to Address These IoT Security Challenges?

As of now, one of the most effective IoT device identification technologies is a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) with the use of digital certificates.

Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) is a technology that ensures secure connections while enabling the identification and authentication of both users and devices.

🔑 IoT Device Authentication

Most IoT devices, especially those managed through companion mobile app development, play a critical role in projects like how to develop a connected car application, as they require optimized storage and efficient data handling. Their primary goal is to focus exclusively on gathering and transferring sensitive data from various sources in a short amount of time.

However, because such vulnerable devices cannot quickly counteract malicious intents, they are prone to cyber intrusions, highlighting key IoT security challenges and solutions.

Challenges for Secure IoT Authentication

Since the resources available to IoT devices are limited, the authentication process should be simpler than, for instance, authenticating a user. To tailor this process to the specific case, it’s crucial to determine the most suitable authentication model.

The two most common models for securing the authentication stage of an IoT device and addressing challenges for secure IoT are:

• Shared Secret Authentication (Symmetric Cryptosystem)
• Public Key Authentication (Asymmetric Cryptosystem)

Let’s take a closer look at each!

Shared Secret Authentication (SSA)

SSA is a method where two parties prove their identities to each other by using a pre-established secret, such as a password, PIN, or a cryptographic key.

The purpose of SSA is to securely exchange data — known in cryptography as a “shared secret” — after communication has been established, as is typical in symmetric cryptosystems.

The most common authentication method for this model is the challenge-response method. To mitigate IoT security risks, the party requiring authentication must provide the correct “response” to the “challenge” issued by the other party.

🔐 Encryption

The foundation of IoT systems, which significantly impacts IoT software development cost, is the constant data flow between connected devices. When it comes to securing this data flow, the top priorities are:

• Maintaining data integrity: Ensure no third party can manipulate or falsify information within your IoT systems.
• Ensuring confidentiality: Grant restricted access to data only to personnel who are authorized to receive it, to prevent data breach.

To solve these security challenges in Internet of Things, we need to find a solution that satisfies both of these requirements.

IoT Data Security Issues

Both of these data security priorities can be managed by implementing data encryption and decryption, which are crucial components in addressing IoT security issues, where data sensitivity is high. There are two types of encryption systems:

1. Symmetric encryption: Both encryption and decryption require a single cryptographic key.
2. Asymmetric encryption: Both operations require multiple cryptographic keys: a “public” key for encryption and a “private” key for decryption.

While symmetric systems are simpler and offer the advantage of high-speed data encryption, asymmetric systems prioritize security and require authentication as an additional step.

Let’s take a closer look at the encryption algorithms used in IoT, a critical component in addressing IoT security problems and solutions.

🗂️ Heterogeneity of Connected Devices

Heterogeneity is one of the most significant security challenges in the Internet of Things sphere. With the vast variety of IoT devices and countless potential security issues, it’s nearly impossible to predict and counter every single cyber intrusion in each unique case.

A key factor in addressing this challenge is effective IoT device management, as each device comes with its own security requirements and must be treated individually. This tailored approach is critical, given the wide range of IoT vulnerabilities and incidents that demand customized solutions for securing each unique device.

IoT Security Risks With Heterogeneity in IoT

To address the heterogeneity issue in Internet of Things security challenges, we recommend using the Information-Driven Architecture (IDRA) for wireless sensor networks. IDRA is designed to create, store, and manage packet interactions within network services. In heterogeneous IoT systems, the same node can handle various types of packets.

IDRA interprets incoming packets of any type using a large number of descriptors, ensuring a secure connection between diverse IoT devices. When selecting outgoing packet types, IDRA identifies both the Media Access Control (MAC) and routing protocols required for the specific packet type and automatically transmits the packet using the correct MAC protocol.

🔓 Additional IoT Security Challenges to Describe

As you already understand, you may encounter some challenges of securing IoT devices. We’ve covered issues related to identification, authentication, encryption, and heterogeneity, but those may not be the only concerns.

In this section, our developer, Sergei Shemshur, will discuss additional challenges that may arise when developing IoT app and implementing IoT security.

Hardware-based Security

Hardware-based security involves using specialized integrated circuits for encryption, rather than relying solely on software solutions. This approach significantly enhances the system's robustness, but it may not always be feasible due to the increased cost per device manufactured.

For example, in automotive applications, you could use V2X communication or MAX10 FPGA chip.

Unique Encryption Keys for Each Device

Using unique encryption keys for each device ensures that data remains protected against interception, even if a third party extracts the encryption key through reverse engineering. These unique keys can also serve as a means of authenticating the device.

Physical Security

Using tamper-resistant or tamper-evident packaging can greatly enhance device security. If the device detects tampering, it can respond appropriately by generating alerts, entering lockdown mode, or even self-destructing by wiping its storage.

Secure Boot

For more complex systems, enabling Secure Boot ensures that the device can only boot with software verified by the manufacturer. This prevents unauthorized firmware from being loaded onto the device.

✅ IoT Security Best Practices

To navigate the complex landscape of IoT security problems and solutions, here are some best practices that individuals and organizations can follow:

— Keep devices and software secure

Frequently update your IoT devices with the latest firmware and patches to address vulnerabilities. Manufacturers regularly release updates that can fix security problems, so ensuring either automatic updates or manual checks is essential.

— Set strong authentication

Many IoT devices have simple or common passwords that can be easily cracked. To add an extra layer of security, always use multi-factor authentication (MFA) whenever possible.

— Secure Network Connections

Ensure that data transmitted to and from IoT devices is encrypted, and use secure protocols for communication between devices. Additionally, encrypt your Wi-Fi network by leveraging strong encryption methods such as WPA2 or WPA3.

— Implement Network Segmentation

Use network segmentation to isolate IoT devices from other network assets as a security measure, helping to limit the impact of potential security breaches.

— Regulate and Audit IoT Devices at Regular Intervals

Maintain a log of all IoT devices connected to your network and implement regular IoT monitoring to detect any suspicious activities. Use security tools to scan network traffic and identify irregularities, helping address IoT security concerns and ensure the integrity of your digital space.

— Educate and Train Users

Security is crucial when it comes to IoT, and education is key. Teach users about the potential dangers and instruct them on adopting security measures. It's also essential for users to be aware of phishing attempts and to learn how to recognize and avoid them.

— Leverage IoT Security Solutions

Consider implementing professionally designed IoT security solutions that offer features such as device discovery, risk assessment, vulnerability prevention, and network segmentation.

If you’re planning to build a smart home application, exploring the cost of an app like AT&T Smart Home Manager will help you allocate resources for critical security features such as encryption, authentication, and network protection.

📝 How Stormotion Addresses IoT Security Challenges

Since we offer IoT development services and work on various projects, our developers have extensive experience tackling the challenges of securing IoT devices. Below are three examples of how Stormotion successfully addressed IoT security concerns and provided tailored solutions for our clients.

Norsk Guardian

Norsk Guardian allows users to monitor their boat batteries and ensure safe trips. However, a significant IoT security concern arose from the environment in which the app operates.

Fishing competitions often involve substantial prizes, and competitors frequently intercept signals from boats to hack into each other's devices. This posed a risk to Norsk’s customers, as malicious actors could tamper with battery data, potentially causing disastrous consequences at sea.

At Stormotion, we take the Internet of Things security issues seriously, and our expertise allows us to deliver reliable and secure solutions for our clients. From securing critical data and protecting financial transactions to preventing unauthorized access, we help our clients build IoT systems that they can trust.

💡 Takeaways

IoT security involves tools and frameworks to protect devices, data, and networks from malicious actors. Let’s recap how to address critical security challenges in IoT:

• Identification: Ensuring robust systems like Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) for secure device recognition.
• Authentication: Implementing Shared Secret Authentication or Public Key Authentication for secure data exchange.
• Encryption: Utilizing symmetric (AES, Blowfish) and asymmetric (RSA, DSA) encryption for data integrity and confidentiality.
• Heterogeneity: Addressing diverse device protocols with architectures like Information-Driven Architecture (IDRA).
• Additional Measures: Hardware-based security, unique encryption keys, physical tamper protection, and Secure Boot mechanisms enhance overall device protection.
• Best Practices: Frequent software updates, strong authentication methods, network encryption, segmentation, and user education are pivotal.

If you have any questions about IoT security challenges or need help with creating a secure IoT project, let us know. We’ll be happy to help you meet your business goals with an outstanding product!