Colin Barceloux, CEO, Axius will be speaking at Parks Associates 22nd-annual CONNECTIONS: The Premier Connected Home Conference in San Francisco.  He kindly provided the analyst team with insights on consumer security concerns in the smart home. 

Colin will be participating on the Tech Support & Privacy: Creating Consumer Confidence session at CONNECTIONS.  This session will be held Wednesday, May 23, at 1:15 PM, and will also feature the following participants:

• Jon Clay, Director, Global Threat Communications, Trend Micro
• J.B. Fowler, Chief Product Officer, DOMOTZ
• Ted Haeger, VP of Training & Support, Control4

Given the continual increase in the number of connected products, how can providers ease consumer concerns associated with data security and privacy?

Offering consumers clear, tangible steps they can take to ensure they’re purchasing secure devices is something all providers, as well as manufacturers, should be doing. Whether it be offering added security framework, or even just externally communicating security best practices through relevant channels – a focus on security is key to driving consumer adoption and establishing trust in the evolving IoT. At Axius we send each consumer a security score and checklist. The auto-generated score gives an idea of how secure their home is and the checklist provides steps to take to improve the current security score.

Have you seen any new cutting-edge innovations that could tip the smart home scale from early adopter to mass market adoption?

There are lots of new products and business models disrupting the smart home currently. We’re seeing voice control compatibility become standard for smart home systems and greater implementation of AI-based solutions. Overall, one of the largest problems within smart homes is a complex consumer set up experience. We believe a focus on solutions built into the home will help to ensure devices are installed correctly for increased adoption. Specifically at Axius, we’re working on creating solutions to help combat this device set-up challenge and continuously support the end consumer. Builders can then focus on selling more smart home tech, integrators can more adequately service customers and anticipate their needs, and end-users will have the peace of mind knowing that their connected systems are being continuously monitored and serviced without having to make a phone call every time they have an issue.

Will the rise of DIY solutions significantly impact the traditional security landscape?

As more consumers turn to DIY smart home security systems, we think we’ll see the traditional security landscape pivot to compete with the ease-of-use and accessibility that DIY smart security offers. But I think that we’ll find the monitoring aspect is still important to consumers. Smart security can be as simple as a smart lock paired with a few door/window sensors, but consumers also want to know that their systems are being managed and are working as they should. A smart door lock that goes offline and doesn’t reset itself while a family is on vacation isn’t protecting a home. In addition to physical security, it will also be important to clearly communicate cybersecurity best practices to end-users and offer tools that keep their devices safe. A more connected world opens up new opportunities, but it also leaves homes and buildings exposed and vulnerable to potential cyber-attacks as more devices sit on the network. Leveraging management and monitoring tools like the solutions we offer at Axius, in addition to standard best practices such as changing passwords regularly, will all contribute to ensuring connected systems remain safe as the IoT continues to evolve. To ensure mass adoption of DIY connected products, monitoring and support options still need to be accessible and designed to be simple to use through a monitoring support system. A security solution, DIY or otherwise, is only as good as the support and management it receives.

For more information on CONNECTIONS, visit: www.connectionsus.com.