6.4 billion 'things' will be connected to the Internet by the end of 2016 expanding the Internet of Things with devices from toasters and kettles to cars and hospital equipment according to analyst Gartner. That figure represents a 30 percent rise from 2015 and this is predicted to grow further to reach 20.8 billion by 2020. In 2016 it is expected as many as 5.5 million new things will become connected every day. As a result, the growing Internet of Things will support total services spending of $235bn in 2016, up 22 percent from 2015, the analyst predicts.

Many of these devices will form part where homes are going and Security Media Publishing looks at ‘smart home’ trends for INTERSEC. The ‘smart home’ or ‘digital home’ is in the ascendancy says a recently published report by Barclays bank where they conclude that the average house buyer is willing to pay more for forward leaning smart technology integrated into a new home.

So what is a ‘smart home’? The Barclays report defines it as one, which includes both connected technology such as a smart thermostat that connects to a property’s internet and can be controlled through a remote device, as well as digital infrastructure that is integrated into the home, such as fibre optic broadband and solar panels.

Smart homes are incorporating many smart fire and security devices, including smart carbon monoxide and fire detectors that can alert your phone to something happening where you can use your smart CCTV to look at it and if it is a false alarm you can turn the alarm off, open the window and adjust your lighting, music and air-conditioning so your house just right for your arrival.

Interestingly, the Barclays report has revealed that when it comes to choosing technology to invest in, homeowners are putting practicality first. When choosing where to spend their money, the most common technologies homeowners think they would be likely to purchase in the future are in fact those that support a home’s infrastructure, such as USB connections (36 per cent) or super-fast broadband capability (51 per cent) and devices that save money rather than time, such as smart meters (35 per cent) and solar panels (27 per cent).

Whilst confusion over the range of technology in the market is a barrier for some homeowners, the Barclays Mortgages survey also found over half (61 per cent) of consumers questioned have lingering worries that an internet-connected system might be exploited by hackers to get hold of their personal details, with 58 per cent worrying that an unsecure smart network could reveal when they are away from home to potential burglars.

However, protection is at hand and leading the way in providing a VPN solution for internet connected devices id the Finish Cyber Security Company F-Secure.

“People are starting to buy all kinds of new smart devices to use in their homes and we know that these devices are already being hacked,” said Samu Konttinen, F-Secure’s executive vice president, consumer security.

“We’ve seen footage from nanny cams streamed online without people’s knowledge or consent, and it’s been proven that intruders can use something as simple as a connected light bulb to get access to people’s homes. Criminals are constantly developing new ways of turning people’s technology against them and security solutions need to evolve to meet this challenge.”

We approach protecting people by securing the internet-connected devices in their living space – including IoT devices that are unable to run traditional security apps by securing those devices through our cloud services with our VPN services to secure internet traffic going in and out of homes.

Konttinen added that these security and convenience capabilities would become more valuable as people upgrade their homes to include more smart devices – a trend that’s becoming more common. Gartner projects that people will have over 500 internet-connected devices in their homes by 2022.