Low-end Chinese IoT wearables — A dive into privacy and security concerns

In the last years the market of “wearables” is exponentially increasing setting many expectations for the rise of a new form of economy and an industrial “revolution” (a.k.a. Industry 4.0).

“Wearable” devices are not just a visionary buzzword anymore but are massively present in our everyday life, sometimes without us being aware of such ubiquity.

Corporate research and market insights say that the most relevant market share is now hold by smartwatch and activity tracker brands, as shown below.

Let’s take a look around the “wearable” ecosystem and on what is under the surface. What is the hidden cost we pay for our ever-connected world?

Most of these devices are pervasive and are already in our day by day, but which cyber security threats are under the hood? Our privacy is at risk?

Are we collectively start trading “coolness”, usability and a low price-tag for our cyber privacy and security? Unfortunately the latest DNI report is not reassuring at all:

“The widespread incorporation of “smart” devices into everyday objects is changing how people and machines interact with each other and the world around them, often improving efficiency, convenience, and quality of life. Their deployment has also introduced vulnerabilities into both the infrastructure that they support and on which they rely, as well as the processes they guide. Cyber actors have already used IoT devices for distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, and we assess they will continue. In the future, state and non-state actors will likely use IoT devices to support intelligence operations or domestic security or to access or attack targeted computer networks.“

We will discuss about IoT Cyber Security threats and privacy concern on 23–24 of June 2017 at E-Privacy 2017 — Summer Edition