What lurks beneath the Internet of Things hype? Nagging security fears.

If you go by what everyone was saying at the massive CES tech showcase, we're speeding toward a future in which everything is connected and talking to every other thing, all to make your life a little better.

The annual gadget extravaganza was full of electronic marvels, from Samsung's super-fridge to Internet-savvy cars and even diaper-changing pads that measure poop. Those and a zillion other smart devices had the Las Vegas show floor and company suites abuzz last week with optimism about the so-called Internet of Things.

Here's what fewer folks were discussing: the nagging concerns about security that have cast a shadow over the shiny Internet of Things promise. It was just two months ago, for instance, that the hack of Chinese electronic-toy maker VTech exposed the personal information of 5 million customers. More broadly, there's the unsettling notion that smart homes can open the door to hackers.

If consumers are worried about incursions on their privacy or personal data, that would be bad news for gadget makers.

"It's a potential barrier to customers adopting the new technology," said John Curran, managing director of the communications, media and tech practice for consulting firm Accenture.

A study conducted in November by Accenture found that nearly half the respondents cited security concerns and privacy risks among the top three reasons they would stay away from Internet of Things devices and services, ranging from smartwatches to connected home thermostats. The survey, released last week, involved 28,000 respondents from 28 countries.

The key for companies offering these services is to figure out how to convince customers of their ability to protect sensitive data, Curran said. "The study indicates tremendous upside potential," he said. "People just aren't ready to jump in just yet."

The onus is on the tech industry to figure this out. "It's up to us as tech providers to make consumers excited," BlackBerry CEO John Chen said last week in an interview. With the company's BlackBerry Priv smartphone, for example, the company has given people tools to control what information they share with others.

AT&T, meanwhile, said it has committed to being transparent when it comes to how it handles its data. "We have been more diligent than any other carrier about how we do things," Glenn Lurie, chief executive of AT&T's mobility business, said in an interview last week.



Roger Cheng.
Full story at MSN.