Prior to Parks Associates’ 22nd-annual CONNECTIONS: The Premier Connected Home Conference, Timo Laaksonen, President, F-Secure Americas, F-Secure spoke with the analyst team to discuss the concerns associated with data security and privacy.

Timo will be participating on the Security and Data Analytics: Protecting the Connected Consumer panel on Thursday, May 24, at 10:30 AM. Panelists joining him on this session include:

Marcio Avillez, SVP Networks, CUJO AI
Rich Bira, Managing Director, USA, Fibaro
Sanjay Manney, Sr. Director of Product Management and Marketing, Rambus
Duane Paulson, VP - Strategic Partnerships, Fing

Given the continual increase in the number of connected products, how can providers ease consumer concerns associated with data security and privacy?
Connected products vendors need to proactively adopt secure service design, and data collection and protection principles, practices, processes and technologies from the get go. If there are industry initiatives or regulation in place then adopt and comply with the same among the first in the market. This way vendors can turn their investments and efforts onto data security and privacy into a competitive edge and differentiator.

Make it dead simple for consumers to take into use what security and privacy measures they have made available. Then remind consumers from time to time – without imposing – of the measures that are in place to secure them.

Full transparency toward consumers. Communicate in clear language what data is collected, what it is used for and how it is safeguarded against potential threats. Display privacy statement prominently within all service collateral and online presence.

How will artificial intelligence (AI) impact the smart home, IoT, and connected entertainment landscapes in 2018 and beyond?
AI will enrich the user experience of existing smart home services and spark development of a whole host of new adaptive services we cannot even imagine right now.

In terms of security, AI powered security services that work in tandem with cyber security experts will provide a great level of protection, detection and response services to residential customers.
We can anticipate consumer frustration with fully AI-based services becoming either too chatty or coming up with false positives, or both. We believe that the combo of man and machine (read: AI) will be the holy grail for compelling connected home security services while avoiding consumer frustration and backlash.

What effect will the implementation of 5G technologies have on connected consumers? What effect will it have on providers?
5G will potentially drive currently fragmented LTE-IoT technologies (NB-IoT, LTE-M, etc.) toward more standardization and therefore drive wider adoption thanks to improved interoperability.
https://medium.com/iotforall/cellular-iot-explained-nb-iot-vs-lte-m-vs-5g-and-more-8f26496df5d4

There is a risk for added confusion. Consumers’ are less likely to have the ability to manage and control their 5G devices within the same framework as the rest of their smart devices connected to their fixed broadband. For example: “Now which of my devices are protected and which are not?”
How might blockchain impact the smart home landscape? Is it worthy of all the hype?
Blockchain will be a driver for innovation of technologies that will enable new types of smart home services. There will be start-ups with sufficient funding through ICOs to create innovative features using blockchain, especially in the AI-powered service sphere. This is already happening on M2M side and with smart cities, so it’s just a matter of time before same technologies will be applied to smaller environments, such as homes. https://www.memoori.com/innovative-startups-bring-ai-blockchain-smart-buildings/

Have you seen any new cutting-edge innovations that could tip the smart home scale from early adopter to mass market adoption?
Voice assistants are addressing an absolutely crucial element in smart home development; Creating a user interface and experience that practically anyone can master. It naturally holds the promise of being The Single/Primary Interface to all connected home devices and services.

Any innovation or technology that is aiming to improve something that people are already used to is pushing the scale towards mass market adoption. Smart fridges, toasters, thermostats, etc. People need to buy these devices anyway, and in near future very few of them will be non-connected because i) the underlying technology to connect all things is so cheap and ii) all device vendors and service providers want to tap onto usage data.

Mass market adoption will start when interoperability between the devices will reach same level of simplicity we experience with WiFi networks today. Example; connecting modern WiFi printer to home WiFi – any device can interact with it out of the box.

Will the rise of DIY solutions significantly impact the traditional security landscape?
Not really. Security and privacy related features rely on security clouds, heuristics, AI and machine learning, and they are capable of assigning devices even within a DIY solution into a relevant protection category.

How can companies capitalize on consumer interest in a home insurance-smart home connection? What potential impact will that interest have for business models on both sides?
Smart technology in customer’s home can decrease traditional risks of fire, malfunctions, etc. New smoke detectors, leak monitors, and alarm systems, just to name a few, all contribute to a lower risk profile.

Customer data that is collected from customers’ homes using smart devices will allow insurance companies to assess risk levels more effectively leveraging big data. They can provide more competitive rates to low-risk profiles. In the long run big data will also help predict possible issues with homes and provide mitigation options for home owners.

Business models are already impacted with insurance companies giving out perks and discounts to customers who have adapted new technologies, such as smart leak detectors.
https://myhippo.com/blog/index.php/2017/10/31/insurance-providers-want-smart-home/

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