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New Initiative by the World Economic Forum (WEF) on IoT Cybersecurity

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The PETRAS National Centre of Excellence for IoT Systems Cybersecurity endorses the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) new initiative calling for a global baseline for consumer IoT security.

Network-connected devices have become a dominant trend in the evolution of consumer products. Today, everything from TV’s, to watches, to refrigerators are increasingly part of the internet of things (IoT). While these “smart” devices offer myriad benefits to consumers, they also expose individuals and organizations to added cyber risk when they are not developed and maintained with security in mind and often lack the security capabilities of traditional computer products. With billions of connected consumer devices now on the market, and billions more soon to follow, there is need for a strong global baseline for IoT security in the next generation of consumer products.

The World Economic Forum is a community reflecting the interests of security researchers, technology providers, and consumers, alarmed by rising threats stemming from insecure consumer IoT devices. They welcome the global consensus forming around three key capabilities that can begin setting a clear baseline for consumer IoT security – (1) No universal default passwords; (2) Implement a vulnerability disclosure policy; and (3) Keep software updated – and support these as an immediate priority for respective manufacturers and vendors to implement in order to improve consumer IoT device security.

Please find the World Economic Forum’s Statement of Support here.

To have your organization endorse this statement or for more information on how to get involved, please contact: info@cybertechaccord.org