Open Tech Calendar

It is generally considered that the IoT is a good thing. This is because it will make cities cleaner and more efficient, add trillions of dollars to the global economy by increasing productivity, and comes with the promise of making our lives longer, healthier, and happier. That's the good news, but as the number of devices connected to the Internet increases, so will the risks associated with security breaches.

Industrial equipment and other strategic assets will become increasingly attractive targets, as will our personal data. This is because devices worn on our bodies, embedded within us, and located within our homes will continually harvest huge volumes of extremely personal information about us. This data containing information about our location, finances, health and other details will become potential gold dust to third parties. This is fine if the data is shared with our consent, and used for valid purposes, but if it is hacked the consequences could be dire. Potential hazards include identity theft, blackmail, and harm to people and property. Examples of worst case scenarios include interference with medical devices, hijack of autonomous vehicles, and destruction of critical national infrastructure.

Within the context of consumer electronics, the nature of security breaches will increasingly become personal. For example, someone may use a smart domestic appliance which is not adequately protected, to gain access to a home's wi-fi. This could result in the hacker being able to circumvent security systems such as connected doors and window locks, snoop on the family's email, and spy on them via their webcam, smart TV, and baby monitor.

The good news is that there are ways to increase security thereby preventing breaches. Connected devices are often easy to hack because either the consumer hasn't set the device up properly, or they haven't entered a sufficiently secure password. By simply ensuring that devices are set up adequately, risks can be mitigated. The burden of responsibility does not, however, fall entirely on the consumers' shoulders. Often OEMs take an "MVP mindset", which means that they are more concerned about building and shipping products, than they are about security. MVP stands for Minimum Viable Product, and is a mantra used by many startups, the kinds of scrappy organisations that raise money via crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter. On the one hand they should be admired for their "move fast and break things" approach, but on the other they need to understand that although a "ship and forget" attitude may be tolerated by technically sophisticated early adopters, it won't wash with general consumers.

This, and other topics relating to the security of connected devices and the IoT in general, will be covered during what promises to be another engaging and thought-provoking event.

18:00 REGISTRATION


18:15 - 18:20 WELCOME


18:20 - 18:30 Simon Montford (WEB3//IOT)

Open Forum; members are invited to make announcements, share news, seek project collaborators, recruit talent, promote their IoT events, and request topics for future Meetups.


18.30 - 18:50 Robert Hayes (Microsoft Enterprise Cybersecurity Group)

Robert has a unique profile of skills and experience, which has enabled him to become a trusted and valued strategic advisor to Ministers and senior leaders in the global public and private sector. He is a high profile keynote speaker, with an excellent media presence, who uses his exceptional personal network and refined influencing skills to open challenging, but important doors for the organisations he has worked for.


18:50 - 19:10 TBC

Speaker to be confirmed shortly.


19:10 - 19:30 David Rogers (Founder and CEO at Copper Horse Solutions)

David Rogers chairs the GSMA Device Security Group, sits on the Executive Board of the IoT Security Foundation and teaches the Mobile Systems Security course at the University of Oxford. Copper Horse Solutions provides mobile phone, IoT and connected car security expertise. The company is currently developing products for the Internet of Things as well as developing software for various mobile and IoT platforms.


19:30 - 19:50 Discussion & Q&A


19:50 - 21:00 NETWORKING & DRINKS

Topics: IoT Security, IoT Privacy, Internet of Things, IoT, Drones, UAVs, Microsoft, Azure, Smart Home Security, Hacking, Identity Theft, Social Engineering, Remotely Operated Aerial Vehicles, UAVs, Spying, Data Breach, M2M, Autonomous Vehicles, Corporate Espionage, Car Hacking, Connected Vehicle, LPWAN, Edge Computing, Machine-to-Machine, Ship and Forget, Embedded Computing, Consumer IoT Devices, Smart Home Monitors, WebCam, Data Protection, Computer Virus, Identity Theft, Confidential Data, Blackmail,Corporate Espionage, Mission Critical Devices, Medical Data Theft, Location Data Tracking, Snooping, Medical Device Hacking,Security Vulnerabilities, Encryption, Data Security, Credentials, Biometrics, Facial Recognition, Confidential Information, Connected Devices, Wifi, LiFi, LoRa Alliance, Smart Cities, Site-to-Site VPN, BYOD, DDoS.

Code of Conduct:
Be nice. :)