Security is primary hold up to enterprise ‘internet of things’
The majority of enterprises have already deployed internet of things solutions, according to a new report from 451 Research, which saw the greatest adoption coming from utilities and manufacturers.
Taking stock of the source of enterprise IoT data, 451 found 51% comes from data center information technology equipment, 34% from camera/surveillance equipment, 33% from data center facilities equipment, and 29% from smartphones and other end-user devices.
In terms of how the data is used to improve enterprise operations, researchers found 66% of IoT deployments reduce risk, 33% facilitate “developing new or enhance existing products or services” and 21% for enhancing customer segmenting. “This also varies by industry with manufacturing and utilities mostly focused on optimizing operations, while reducing risk is more critical for those in finance and public sector,” the authors note.
“The term internet of things has proliferated rapidly and taken on different meanings depending on the audience,” 451 Research Director Dan Harrington said. “As is reflected in our survey data, these connected endpoint scenarios are both old and new. They vary immensely from traditional use cases such as IP connected cameras, building automation, warehouse automation and telematics to emerging industrial use cases such as crop monitoring and remote patient monitoring. Organizations are both enhancing their already connected endpoints with greater capabilities as well as connecting new objects with sensors and circuitry to derive net new value for the business.”
The sensor data being collected are broken down into three types, along with respective percent of total.
In terms of factors that impede internet of things deployments, security concerns led the way, followed by internal skill sets, lack of IT capacity and “lack of perceived ROI/benefits.”
One survey respondent called security “the elephant in the room … I’m getting a lot of pushback on my security requirements for all of these IoT projects.”
