Susceptible To Attack

There are several threat vectors for IoT in homes. First up, Symantec found that 58 percent of IoT devices relied on WiFi for connectivity. The problem with a reliance on WiFi is that wireless networks are typically protected by poor passwords that can easily be cracked.

Once a home’s WiFi network has been hacked, intruders can use tools such as Wireshark to analyze traffic. Symantec said many of the IoT firms, such as LightwaveRF and its smart hub, generate traffic that can be intercepted by attackers.

“Since this connection is neither encrypted, nor authenticated, it can easily be targeted by an attacker with access to the network, allowing them to conduct a man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack,” Symantec wrote.