Canadian small to mid-sized businesses are more keen about the growing Internet of Things (IoT) industry than even their counterparts are, according to a new survey released on Wednesday by security vendor AVG Technologies.
When asked if IoT would help them make more money, 76 per cent of Canadian businesses said they believe that it will, compared to 57 per cent on average, and only 49 per cent in the U.S. AVG had market research firm Vanson Bourne conduct 1,770 interviews of decision makers at organizations between 1-500 employees in Canada, the U.S., the U.K., Germany, and Australia. The public sector was not included in this survey, conducted during the month of September.
IoT is a trend that refers to the growing number of devices being manufactured that now come complete with an IP address and are connected to the Internet. Grouped under this category is wearable technology such as smart glasses (think Google Glass), smart watches (like Apple Watch), or even brain-wave sensing headbands (Muse). Also included in this new industry are even smaller devices such as sensors that could automatically feed information into a corporation’s backend.
Almost half of SMBs feel IoT is going to be the biggest IT trend that impacts their organization in the next five years. As a result, companies recognize they will likely have to do more to protect their sensitive data – with 71 per cent saying extra steps will be needed. It’s often pointed out by security experts that more connected devices also means more points of a potential attack by a hacker, and possibly more vulnerabilities in the software that controls these devices.
The good news is that businesses have set aside some money to deal with IoT. About three in five businesses around the world say they have a budget assigned to IoT for the next 12 months ahead and almost half say that’s a “moderate” or “substantial” budget.