Internet of Things and Home Security

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Hah, that dual chamber deadbolt and the door jamb reinforcement! Yup, they’re good at keeping thieves from getting to your jewelry box and stash of $100 bills, but what about your bank accounts and identity?

5HIf you have any “smart” gadgets in your house, cybercriminals may be able to hack into these and burrow straight to your financial information, credit card information, Social Security number and everything else about you—and rip you off like no masked man picking your front door lock can.

In vulnerable devices, a hacker can gain access to your bank account number, passwords, usernames, etc., through your “connected” thermostat, baby monitor, even home security system. The Internet of Things is a godsend to cyberthieves. In short, if something in your house is wireless, it’s hackable, says a report on forbes.com.

Now this isn’t to say that you’d better toss that smart baby monitor or milk-spoilage detector, but it simply means that now is as good a time as ever to be aware of how hackers could exploit these gadgets. And that people should weigh the benefits and risks of convenience vs. hackability.

For example, will your life really be easier if your connection to the Internet is activated by your voice rather than finger on a mouse? So rather than go the route of convenient gadgets that don’t consider security, choose security devices that come with “smart” security features too.

For ideal security, all of a home’s connected devices should communicate with each other. This can’t happen if gadget 1 is from Company A; gadget 2 from Company B, and so on.

Again, there’s no need to fear that the connected baby monitor will give a hacker in Russia access to your savings account, but the Internet of Things has reached a point where we must give some pause to all of the possibilities.

Robert Siciliano personal and home security specialist to BestHomeSecurityCompanys.com discussing burglar proofing your home on Fox Boston. Disclosures.