Internet of Things (IoT) Consumer Research

• Title: Internet of Things (IoT) Consumer Research
• Partners: CSIRO’s Data61, with members from Software and Computational Systems, Analytics and Decision Science, and Strategic Insights
• Project leader: Marthie Grobler
• Duration: August to September 2020

Many Australian are now working from home and utilising their home networks, typically with less cyber secure protocols than before. At the same time, Australian consumers are increasingly purchasing IoT devices and relying on ‘smart’ products which leverage digital interconnectivity, yet frequently are not manufactured with ‘secure-by-design’ principles. As a result, Australians are facing new levels of cyber exposure, and are increasingly vulnerable to malicious cyber activity that could be conducted at the hands of various cyber threat actors.

In collaboration with the Cyber Security Cooperative Research Centre, we are conducting a survey to analyse the attitudes of Australian consumers and businesses regarding cyber security and Internet of Things devices, with insights used to inform future policy development. The Department of Home Affairs would like to utilise this research to inform its actions moving ahead, particularly in relation to its forthcoming voluntary IoT Code of Practice. It could also inform future interventions that might be undertaken with regard to Australian manufacturers of IoT devices in a move to reduce reliance on foreign technologies and an increased demand for security built-ins to mitigate risks.