Europol Urges Boosted Security For Internet Of Things

European police and experts Wednesday warned manufacturers to do their utmost to ensure consumer goods which connect to the internet cannot be easily hacked

The Hague, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Oct, 2017 ) :European police and experts Wednesday warned manufacturers to do their utmost to ensure consumer goods which connect to the internet cannot be easily hacked.

"Industry needs to pay much more attention to the security of their connected devices, that compromise the security of users' personal information, against criminal hackers," said Europol chief Rob Wainwright.

"We should all be concerned," he told a conference of manufacturers, cybersecurity specialists and experts. Although the vulnerabilities of computers and mobile phones are well known, it was the first such conference organised by Europol "to raise awareness of the security implications of the Internet of Things (IoT)".

"If you have a camera in your house, for example in the baby's room to look after him, a hacker can virtually take possession of it and easily see from home what you have in your house," one expert told the conference, giving a real-time demonstration of the potential dangers.

A car that it is connected to the internet could also potentially be easily hacked, and locked or unlocked with ease. There are also fears among professionals about the potential of hacking into pacemakers, said Evangelos Ouzounis, head of secure infrastructures and services for the EU Agency for network and Information Security (ENISA).

"The culture of cybersecurity does not exist in the connected devices industry, so it must be pursued in order to face the challenges in our community today, and even more in the future," added Wainwright.