Smart homes are common nowadays. Many people worldwide live in smart homes with smart devices, appliances, light switches, locks, security systems, etc. You control your whole smart home from your smartphone. Everybody is usually talking about the advantages of living in a smart home. However, the safety and security of such homes are rarely mentioned. Keep reading to learn more about the hidden dangers of smart home devices and how to stay safe and secure.
Various hidden dangers come with living in smart homes. Some of them include potential identity theft, password exploitation and home intrusion. When it comes to keeping your home safe and secure, there are a few things we can do. Firstly, we should secure the router and WiFi passwords. We should also update our passwords regularly. And lastly, we should install software updates regularly as well.
Hidden dangers of smart home devices
The benefits of living in a smart home are significant: you can regulate the thermostat from your phone, turn on the washing machine and so on. It is also suitable for some industries, such as real estate. Real estate agents use smart locks to enter homes and show them to potential buyers. If you hire real estate agents in Mooloolaba, they will use smart home locks wherever possible to meet your schedule and show you a house you are interested in at a convenient time.
Besides the numerous benefits of living in a smart home, hidden dangers include identity theft, password exploitation and home intrusion.
Identity theft
In addition to hackers breaching an individual’s smart home device, they hack the smart device company and infiltrate its database to collect all its users’ data. If they manage to do this, they have access to many users. In cases when hackers have your data and valuable information, they can use them to apply for credit cards in your name, to pay mortgages and impersonate you in any other way, causing your harm. You can reduce identity theft risk by sharing minimal personal information and monitoring your credit card report for changes.
Password exploitation
Another hidden danger of living in a smart home is potential password exploitation. Usually, the password you set for the hub connecting your smart home devices needs to be stronger. However, this is a perfect opportunity for hackers to access the hub and connected devices. This could lead to someone else controlling your light switch or other things around your house. To prevent virtual break-ins, you should always set strong and unique passwords and use 2 levels of authentication for all your devices. You might think it’s too much hassle, but it is not if you consider what things you can prevent from happening.
Home intrusion
Hackers can also use the data they collect to enter your home. They can quickly turn off cameras and unlock doors to enter your home. To prevent that, consider installing an alarm system that isn’t smart, as it can guard you from unauthorised intrusions.
How to keep your smart home devices safe and secure
The hidden dangers of smart home devices that are not double-secured are pretty big. And these are not even all of them. To keep them safe and secure, you should secure your router and WiFi passwords, update your passwords regularly and install software updates.
Secure your router and WiFi passwords
The unsecured router is a threat as anyone can connect to it easily. A router is considered to be unsecured even with a weak password. If a cybercriminal can control a router, they can launch various attacks. This is a reason strong enough to always secure your router and WiFi passwords. Your password should contain capital letters, numbers and special symbols, you should update them frequently and be careful about who you share it to.
Update your passwords regularly
As we briefly mentioned, it is crucial to keep your passwords updated regularly. This is especially important when you hire a housesitter while you are on holiday and provide them with passwords to various devices. In this case, you must change them when you return from your holiday.
Regularly install software updates
Sometimes we delay software updates on our phones or laptops, but we should be mindful when updating our smart devices. You shouldn’t delay or wait too long to update them, as they might not work to their full potential if you skip the update or schedule it for later.
We can notice that smart home devices make our lives easier, but they also come with certain hidden dangers. When we know the dangers, we can also work on securing our smart home.
