RSA Security Conference

Last week in San Francisco, one of the largest security conferences in our nation is taking place. The RSA security conference brings security experts from a variety of fields together to discuss the latest threats, risks, and protection measures regarding internet security.
First and foremost, Christopher Young (general manager of the Intel Security Team) explains just how quickly the Internet is developing and how difficult it is to keep up with security concerns. He also explains how much more important internet security is going to be in the future due to the ‘Internet of Things.’ Because our society is becoming more and more technology dependent, there will be new threats that didn’t exist before as new technologies emerge.
What is the Internet of Things (IoT)?
The Internet of Things revolves around the idea that more and more inanimate entities are connecting to the Internet. Automobiles, home appliances, and even machinery are becoming increasingly dependent on the Internet. However, as more and more devices are connected to the Internet, there are new ways for hackers to exploit devices like never before.
The Future of the Internet and Security
Padmasree Warrior, the CTO of Cisco Systems, went on to reveal some amazing statistics. Today, there are approximately 10 billion devices globally that connect to the Internet. Just five years ago, there were only 1 billion connected devices. However, the 10 billion connected devices represent only a fraction (1%) of what we have the ability to connect to the Internet to improve our lives.
Balancing Opposing Forces
One point that Padmasree made entailed the concern of balance between sharing information and a personalized user experience. On the one hand, if you don’t share information among devices, you can’t personalize services. But, too much sharing of information creates security consequences. “You’re not just controlling and managing inanimate objects or devices, but we’re actually figuring out how to control and manage that interaction of those devices with people,” said Padmasree.
Inadequate Security
Chris responds by explaining how archaic our current knowledge of real time network information is. At any given time, most organizations won’t be able to quantify information such as how many users are on a network, what they are doing, and what their interactions are with applications. There are still many gaps to fill, but real-time awareness of this data is critical for the future of security.
Key Takeaways
One of the biggest takeaways from this conference is how quickly internet security is changing. It is only getting harder to maintain online security, and it is more crucial today than it ever has been before to maintain your online privacy. In the not so distant future, there will be volumes upon volumes of data about you transmitted over the Internet that are sourced from devices that aren’t currently connected. With surges of personal data being constantly transmitted, the need for security and awareness is only going to increase. If you aren’t currently doing anything to protect your online privacy, you’re taking a lot of unnecessary risks. The video of this conference can be found on the RSA website.
You can also check out our review of the best VPNs, so that you have another layer of privacy and security.