A UK-based smart pet products company knows that when it comes to keeping customer data safe, it doesn’t have the luxury of nine lives.
The basic insecurity of many so-called ‘smart’ devices is only now becoming clear as the Internet of Things (IoT) gathers pace. From interactive teddy bears to connected televisions, it seems that many manufacturers are taking short cuts or overlooking security entirely in the rush to get new gadgets to market.
Consumers, quite rightly, are nervous. A survey of over 4,000 US and UK adults, released this week by identity and access management company Gigya, reveals that more than two-thirds (69 percent) are either ‘very concerned’ or ‘concerned’ about the security of their personal data on connected devices such as home appliances and fitness trackers. Americans are more worried than their UK counterparts, it seems, with 73 percent expressing concern, compared to 66 percent of UK consumers.
It’s not a risk that Nick Hill, founder and managing director of smart pet product company SureFlap, is prepared to take. The Cambridge, UK-based company’s customers put a great deal of trust in its products, he says, when it comes to the care and feeding of their much-loved pets:
There’s been a huge amount of stuff in the media around IoT and security issues – and with our brand, and our care for our brand, and for what we’ve built up, we don’t want to be anywhere even close to a security problem. We need our customers to trust us.