ENISA, the European Network and Agency for Security, has announced its plans for 2016, and its research will focus on airport security, the healthcare sector, Smart Cars and public smart roads.
devices are of great concern to EU regulators
At the end of each year, government agencies have a lot of time to put together budgets and plans for the following year.
As this year draws to a close, ENISA has published its 2016 programme, and it is no surprise that the organisation is focusing its efforts on the Internet of things (IoT).
IoT devices have been around for a while, and even if this wasn't the year they first came to light, this is the year everyone has learned about their vulnerabilities.
Thanks to a series of highly publicized hacking cases ranging from cars to refrigerators, and from baby monitors to CCTV cameras, the public is now well aware that, despite the benefits they may bring, these new types of devices available can put their users at risk.
ENISA wants to bring more order to the world of IoT devices
Converging with critical infrastructure , ENISA's mission for the coming year will focus on three critical areas where hacking of internet-connected devices can lead to serious consequences, even the massive loss of human life.
Healthcare, airport security and public road safety will benefit from ENISA's research during 2016, and the agency hopes that the recommendations it issues by the end of next year will reach the floor of the EU Parliament by 2017, so that they can be adopted at the continental level.
Why only these three sectors? Mainly due to the proliferation of internet-connected equipment in hospitals and airports, the increasing number of public healthcare organisations that can be easily hacked, the new technologies that will be introduced in European airports, the arrival of smart cars on European roads, and the ever-evolving concept of smart roads.
You can read the full ENISA programme below. The report is 54 pages long, but the content referred to in this article is on page 14.
