Smart connectivity has been used for years to monitor how people move and exist in a city, campus, or office building. But accelerated adoption of these devices has sparked a debate about the potential benefits and drawbacks, and how to guarantee the security of data and essential infrastructure.

Smart spaces are becoming increasingly common, and more connected with functionality. These tools range from the small-scale smart devices which require manual involvement, such as setting your coffee maker to turn on in the morning, all the way to the larger Internet of Things (IoT) which uses analytics, sensors, and software to monitor and control physical devices – such as adapting traffic lights in response to changing traffic conditions.

Smart devices can improve the efficiency and function of a city or building, providing services such as real-time traffic updates and improved energy management. Additionally, these devices can be used to monitor and improve public safety.

Deakin University, for example, has incorporated several campus experience enhancements via IoT ‘Scout’ is able to access Wi-Fi locations to guide students, staff, and visitors through the campus, and uses heat maps to find quiet areas to study. Scout can offer up information of nearby campus events, discounts at food and drink vendors, or let students know their study group are on campus.

Darwin’s $10 million ‘Switching on Darwin’ project aims to use smart technology to improve community safety and enhance community spaces and urban planning through real-time data analytics.

The importance of designing online systems that are resilient cannot be underestimated, particularly when it comes to smart services. The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) warns of potentially big impacts to the operational technology (OT) which enables places to function, when disrupted smart technologies form part of the infrastructure. The ACSC says that as organisations make OT ‘smart’, the previous boundaries between OT and the outside world blur.

As more and more Australians come to rely on these technologies, it becomes crucial to ensure they are always functioning correctly and securely. To truly unlock the potential of smart technology and deliver reliable and consistent services, it is essential to have the right visibility and monitoring capabilities in place.

Without this, the system is at risk of failure, and the potential benefits of smart technology may never be fully realised. It's high time for companies to start taking the necessary steps to ensure their systems are secure and reliable before it's too late. Introducing smart things must be done with security and privacy front of mind. This can be a challenge with tight budgets as well as the current cyber and IT skills shortage, but not an impossibility.

To mitigate a cascading operational failure, building in redundancies and backups ensures that the infiltration of one device won’t switch off the entire system. Consider the fuse box present in every household – when one device begins to surge the fuse trips in order to protect the rest of the home electricals.

In the private sector recent amendments to the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018 (SOCI) now includes guidelines and specific guidance to help ensure that several industries critical to Australia’s functioning are secure, including higher education, water utilities, and transport. They lay out specific requirements for cyber compliance. For non-corporate Commonwealth government entities, the Essential Eight cybersecurity framework is mandated.

However, for organisations outside of these categories, such as state or territory local governments, or non-critical office buildings, cybersecurity should also be a priority. For each piece of smart technology integrated into a system, organisations must take a holistic approach to cybersecurity, and consider how the new cog interacts with the existing parts.

This requires full visibility over each device, cybersecurity which looks at how OT may interact with IT and actionable intelligence to quickly see, assess, and address a system breach or problem.

With the ongoing skills-shortage, scalability is key. Ensuring that smart additions can fit in your existing security architecture is essential, or that you can access the relevant skills at each stage of development. Security must be at the forefront as entities begin to scale up their smart devices, ensuring their successful implementation.

As more and more Australian organisations come to rely on smart technologies, it becomes crucial to make sure they're always functioning correctly and securely. To truly unlock the potential of smart technology and deliver reliable and consistent services, it's essential to have the right visibility and monitoring capabilities in place. Without this, the system is at risk of failure, and the potential benefits of smart technology may never be fully realised. This can be a challenge with tight budgets as well as the current cyber and IT skills shortage, but not an impossibility. A ‘security-first’ mentality is critical for success.

By Ammar Hindi, Vice President Asia Pacific Japan for Nozomi Networks.

Image: The Conversation