Intel & BitDefender Target Smart Home Security

Two security players have used the CES show in Las Vegas to demonstrate their offerings to help safeguard the growing numbers of smart homes.

Both Intel and BitDefender revealed products designed to prevent malware and other nastiness attempting to infiltrate the Internet of Things (IoT) 

It comes as analyst group Gartner predicts that there will be more than 10.5 billion connected “things” in homes by 2020.

Intel Security

Intel Security says  its McAfee Secure Home Platform includes parental controls – to allow parents to set time limits, and block certain website categories via a mobile app.

Another features includes the ability to isolate devices. This would give parents for example control over which devices are granted guest access to the Wi-Fi. It would also protect the home network from an untrusted or unwanted device.

Other features include device fingerprinting, so all connected devices on the home network are automatically identified, so home owners can easily see what devices are attempting to access their Wi-Fi.

The mobile app can also pause the entire home network, and stop specific devices from connecting to the internet. Intel Security’s platform will be embedded in ARRIS’s Secure Home Gateway portfolio.

“We live in a time where consumers are constantly connecting new devices in their home to the internet. With this unprecedented connectivity comes increased risk,” said John Giamatteo, general manager of Intel Security.

“It’s more important than ever to ensure consumers have proper security controls in place to enjoy the benefits of this new connected technology while minimising the risk. ARRIS shares our vision of protecting consumers in the connected home, and the inclusion of the McAfee Secure Home Platform in their gateway portfolio delivers on this vision.”

Bitdefender BOX

Meanwhile another security vendor, BitDefender, launched the new version of its Bitdefender BOX. This is being touted as a “next-generation IoT security device,” and is designed to offer “comprehensive protection for the connected home.”

So what does the new version offer? Well it has the ability to protect all Wi-Fi enabled devices within the connected home, including gaming consoles, smart TVs, thermostats, cameras and even smart light bulbs.

It also offers ‘enterprise-grade intrusion prevention’ for your local network, and will ensure privacy and data anonymisation, as well as and malware scanning for all internet connected devices.

Also included is Bitdefender Total Security subscription for an unlimited number of Windows, Android, and iOS devices, and vulnerability assessments to identify data theft, malicious attacks or unauthorised access.

“The number of internet connected devices we own has increased dramatically, so has our exposure to hacker attacks,” explained Ciprian Istrate at Bitdefender. “Now is the time to rethink the way we do cybersecurity before we learn it the hard way.

“When making a purchase decision users should have in mind that Bitdefender was the first company to develop consumer IoT security technologies, a strong performance in third party malware detection tests and more than 15 years’ experience.”

Pre-orders for the new Bitdefender BOX will open this summer, with shipments to follow by the end of the year (US only).

Last year Intel Security told Silicon that high-profile customer data breaches are causing some concerns about whether smart homes and the IoT devices within them, are safe scooping up tonnes of user data and storing it with an external cloud provider.

Quiz: What do you know about the Internet of Things?