Why secure your smart home?

Welcome to the Future: Smart Homes Are Here!

Congratulations! Youre living in the age of smart homes, where technology makes your life easier, more convenient, and—lets be honest—pretty cool. Imagine waking up to your smart alarm clock, listening to your favorite tunes streamed from it, and adjusting your thermostat without lifting a finger. Sounds great, right?

Whats All the Buzz About?

Smart home devices are like your personal assistants, always ready to help out. They can do everything from waking you up in the morning to keeping your food fresh in the fridge. According to a study by Raju, R and Moh, M (2022), the last decade has seen a surge in internet-capable devices, surpassing the number of humans on the planet! Thats a lot of gadgets!

In fact, a whopping 30% of homes in the U.S. now have smart speakers like Amazon Alexa or Google Nest. But hold on—this popularity also makes these devices a prime target for hackers.

The Security Problem: What You Need to Know

With all this excitement about smart home devices, theres a catch. Manufacturers are so focused on cranking out new features and selling as many devices as possible that they often overlook one crucial aspect: security.

As a result of this, and the fact these devices tend to work better with the more data they collect, there is little focus on security and privacy.

Whats The Big Deal?

Heres the deal: many smart devices work better when they collect more data. This means that security and privacy often take a backseat. And guess what? Most users dont think about security either! They are too busy drooling over the latest features to consider the risks.

A 2023 study by N.M.A. Hujits et al. found that most people are blissfully unaware of the cybersecurity risks associated with their smart homes. Many didnt even realise that their data is stored in the cloud — basically someone elses computer, And heres the kicker: most cloud services store data in plain text, which means anyone with access can see it. Not good.

The Risks Are Real

Many people in the study believed there was no risk in using smart home devices. Spoiler alert: thats not true. If you dont secure your smart home, hackers could compromise your devices and access your sensitive information. This could lead to your personal details—like email addresses and passwords—being sold on the dark web. Not cool.

Hackers can use your smart devices as a gateway into your home network (thats your Wi-Fi, in case you were wondering). Once they are in, they can exploit security flaws and potentially attack your other devices.

Stay Smart: Protect Your Smart Home

Here are some simple tips to keep your smart home safe:

1. Change Default Passwords: Dont stick with the factory settings! Change your passwords to something strong and unique.
2. Update Regularly: Keep your devices updated with the latest software. Manufacturers often release updates to fix security vulnerabilities.
3. Be Aware: Stay informed about the security features of your devices. Dont just focus on the fun stuff!
4. Use a Secure Network: Make sure your home Wi-Fi is secure. Consider setting up a separate network for your smart devices. (Go to the Your Home Network section for more info on this)
5. Think Before You Click: Be cautious about what information you share and with whom.

References

N. M. A. Huijts, A. Haans, Budimir, S., Fontaine, J., Loukas, G., A. Bezemskij, A. Oostveen, A. Filippoupolitis, Ras, I., IJsselsteijn, W.A. and Roesch, E.B. (2023). User experiences with simulated cyber-physical attacks on smart home IoT. Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, 27(6), pp.2243–2266. Avaliable at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00779-023-01774-5. (Accessed: 17 Deecmeber 2024)

Raju, R. and Moh, M. (2022). Cybersecurity in Smart Homes: Architectures, Solutions and Technologies, 1(2) pp. 75-114 Available at: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/book/9980468 (Accessed: 17 December 2024).

Rawpixelimages (2025). Close up of a locked padlock door. Available at: https://www.dreamstime.com/closeup-locked-padlock-door-closeup-locked-padlock-door-image114820929 (Accessed: 10 March 2025).