Wearable outbreaks

At the beginning of the launch of Google Glass, the security of wearable devices has become the focus of people's discussion. When smart glasses gradually deviate from the core of wearable devices, the security issues of smart wristband products have once again surfaced. Recently, the Chinese government has issued a ban on the use of smart wearable devices. After price, battery life, and functionality, will safety be the next barrier to the popularity of smart wearable devices?

First, the three security doubts of wearable devices

Google glasses have been sold to ordinary users, wristband products are undoubtedly the absolute protagonist of smart wearable. From smart bracelets to smart watches, from simple step counting to the addition of NFC and other modules, behind the rich features, wearable devices have become more and more suspicious.

1, data security

At present, smart bracelets and smart watches are still the mainstream of wearable devices. Although data collected by many devices still stays in motion tracking and sleep monitoring, they are wearable for users who care about protecting personal privacy. The data security of the equipment can not be underestimated.

According to the design logic of general smart wristband products, in addition to data synchronization on APPs on mobile phones, most products will use mobile phone networks to synchronize data to the cloud. In fact, most smart wearable products come from the hands of entrepreneurial teams, and there are inevitable loopholes in the security of cloud data. According to the report, some wearable vendors have breaches of rights in the past year, which allows attackers to enumerate the cloud information of other bracelet holders through the interface. Some equipment manufacturers use GPS or mobile phone APP to record the user's movement trajectory in order to increase the playability of the product. Once the data in the cloud leaks, even if you deliberately restrict the positioning service of the mobile phone system, it is still difficult to escape the fate of being “tracked”.

Under the influence of big data, more and more personal privacy begins to be transparent, and when physical data such as exercise, sleep, heartbeat, and blood pressure are also stolen, even the health and safety of the user is terrible. .

2, equipment safety

In the field of a marathon at a foreign country in 2014, the researchers had carried BT information from 563 different devices. Most of them did not encrypt the information. As a result, researchers could easily obtain health information transmitted by the device. And locate the specific device and wearer through the MAC address and broadcasted device name. Obviously, the device security of wearable products is not annoying.

The most direct loss after equipment is monitored is data leakage, but the equipment safety of wearable products is not limited to the equipment itself. Almost all wearables are connected to mobile devices via Bluetooth or WiFi, which makes it possible to control the phone by controlling less-encryptive wearables. Taking the smart bracelet as an example, due to its own reminder function, it often obtains the permission to read data such as the user's address book and text messages, while smart watches, wearable cameras and other products have more data rights. If the smart wearable device is flawed, it will be a hidden channel for your leaked data.

3, software security

Released by MOTO360 and AppleWatch, smartwatches are on the center stage of wearable devices. Compared to the wristband, the watch has a separate system and can be expanded to more functions through software. However, on the other hand, there are also more security risks.

Compared to the gradual improvement of smart phone systems, the smart watch operating system is still in its infancy, whether in service or security. When personal PCs began to become popular, computer viruses could be described as raging. Today, smart phones are also suffering from malware, and the software security of smart watches is worrying. Compared with the security of computers and mobile phones, once the smart watches are infested by malware, data security and device security cannot be discussed. In particular, the addition of the NFC function makes wearable products more promising in terms of mobile payment, access control systems and other services. In other words, in the future, wearable products involve not only data security, but also personal safety and property of users. Safety is closely related.

Second, can software security of smart watches be avoided?

Apple and Google have long realized the importance of wearable device security. Whether it is AndroidWear or AppleWatch, they are trying to avoid possible software security problems on the architecture. Third-party applications do not exist in an independent form, but use mobile applications. Subsidiary forms exist. However, Bluetooth and WiFi are still the breakthrough point for the attack, and smart watches may be detached from the dependence on mobile phones in the future. Software security problems still need time to test.

Third, will security become a barrier to the popularity of wearable devices?

The smart wearable products on the market have been all kinds, but they are still close to breaking out. For wearable devices, one aspect is that services are more and more humanized and are gradually getting rid of the nature of chicken taste. On the one hand, it is a daunting security issue. So, is the wearable future stalled because of security issues?

For ordinary consumers, the so-called personal privacy has been abandoned at the same time as enjoying Internet services. Mobile devices such as smart phones are constantly selling our personal privacy. Especially after the birth of the cloud service, every photo, every text message, every note, and every call record in the mobile phone are uploaded to the cloud. Whether or not information is leaked is not known to many people. Although some people will talk about the dangers of privacy leakage, when the harm does not translate into substantial harm, few people deliberately refuse to contact new technology. We have gradually become accustomed to the convenience brought about by technology. Smart wearable devices are just another extension of these services. This is an important reason why smart wristband devices are accepted by the public today. When mobile payment services and other services are added to wearable devices, people's security requirements are no longer the same.

In front of the group, apart from the military’s express prohibition against smart wearables, the government and the company did not shut out the smart hardware due to security issues. Because of the important role in sports and health, some companies even encourage employees to use wearable products, which is becoming a trend in Chinese IT companies. However, this does not indicate that the government and companies will be less protective against smart wearable security problems. After all, smart phones have precedents. There is also a vivid case, that is, Google Glass is banned by most places, and the reason why wearable devices are listed on the white list of companies and governments is that the current smart hardware is not limited.

When wearable devices involve more services, security will become a bottleneck for development. From chip vendors to system software to specific service providers, even the formulation and completion of relevant standards, will become the constraints of wearable security. Fortunately, Intel has begun to make efforts in the field of chips. Android, which was born on the basis of open source, chose to be closed on Android Wear. Security is one of the reasons given by Google.

Open source and openness have led to the rapid development of wearables. Security may not be a stumbling block to the next step in the development of wearable devices, but it will be a measure of whether or not wearables will be phased out.