Kaspersky, the Russia based Cybersecurity firm has issued an official warning that every 4 out of 10 automated smart buildings are vulnerable to cyber attacks as the computer systems which are controlling them are affected by malware.
The security researchers add that the specified cyber threats are not targeted or specific to cause damage to automated systems in the buildings but are those commonly seen on corporate networks like malware.
Kaspersky compiled the security report on smart buildings after including inputs from more than 40K smart building owners and residents on a global note. Here the reference to smart buildings doesn’t only include offices or residential dwellings but also include hospitals, shopping malls, prisons, industrial ventures, and public transport.
Note- Smart Buildings are those which put ventilation, security, video surveillance, elevator operations, heating, lighting, electricity, water supply, and alarm systems and fire extinguishing to automation.
The Eugene Kaspersky led company says that only 37.8% of smart buildings are well protected around the globe. And among them, over 11% of them were attacked with variants of spyware and malware targeted to steal account credentials. And over 10.8% of them were attacked by worms and 7.8% of them were hit by phishing scams and ransomware.
Therefore, security experts suggest that all smart buildings owners should take the alert as a wake-up call and start focusing on monitoring of network communication systems on the smart grids to thwart all future cyber threats in a proactive way.
