Where IoT Security Fails, and How Risk-Based Hygiene Can Fix It

Businesses have invested heavily in cybersecurity strategies with layered defenses, risk frameworks, and mature processes to protect data and infrastructure. However, even in the most security-conscious enterprises, one part of the environment remains often neglected: IoT devices.

Overlooking IoT security comes with consequences, and we're already seeing these consequences play out. Ransomware groups have used everyday items as entry points to breach networks in real-world attacks, including surveillance cameras, teleconference systems, badge readers, and household items like vending machines. Campaigns like Mirai, Ripple20, and URGENT/11 proved that embedded software flaws can live on for years until an attacker decides to exploit them. As more devices come online, the scope for disruption only grows.

IoT devices have become embedded in many corners of the modern enterprise. Hospitals rely on wireless infusion pumps and smart monitors, and hotels run on networked thermostats, lighting systems, and door locks. Even manufacturing plants are filled with sensors, controllers, and machines that communicate information to one another.

These systems often increase efficiency, reduce workload, and offer valuable data. However, they also introduce risks that few organizations properly manage.

Most security leaders understand that IoT expands their organization’s attack surface. The problem is on the execution side, because traditional processes and tools for managing risk (such as patching, credential rotation, and configuration control) rarely extend to IoT environments.

These devices often fall outside core security workflows, as they cannot be secured through traditional techniques. They are deployed and forgotten, left to operate without consistent oversight or updates. That security gap creates vulnerable exposure, and attackers know how to find it.

IoT patching and password management still lag behind

Password management and patching illustrate the problem clearly. These are core tenets of any cybersecurity strategy but remain dangerously elusive in IoT environments. Many devices ship with default credentials that never get changed. Some device manufacturers support password updates only through cumbersome, vendor-specific portals (and for businesses with massive, heterogeneous fleets, that can be an impossibly high number of portals).

In deployments with thousands of devices, manually managing credentials and maintaining password hygiene quickly becomes untenable. When credentials are weak or shared across devices, attackers can move laterally with little resistance.

Patching follows a similar pattern. Most IoT manufacturers release updates slowly, if at all. Documentation is inconsistent, ongoing compatibility is uncertain, and firmware may need to be applied manually through local access.

Even when a patch exists, identifying the right version for a specific device model and deployment scenario is a time-consuming and difficult task. The scope of the challenge becomes apparent when multiplied across dozens of vendors: security and IT teams either defer the task or burn excessive resources chasing it.

Understanding the context of risk

Security teams must develop methods for assessing not just whether an IoT device is vulnerable but also whether that vulnerability is exploitable and impactful within the context of their network. This is only achievable with an accurate inventory of the device fleet, including make, model, firmware version, and communication patterns, scanned passively to reduce downtime. 

To prevent device breaches, organizations need the full picture: how each device fits into operational workflows, what it connects to, and whether it can be reached from outside the firewall. With the preliminary work done, they can assign accurate risk levels and identify pain points for targeted remediation efforts.

Building a resilient hygiene model

Effective IoT security programs take traditional vulnerability management and prioritization further by building out policies that can scale as the fleet grows. Instead of manually checking passwords, they implement automated rotation tied to device type and manufacturer. Instead of pushing patches indiscriminately, they use risk context to determine when and where updates are most critical. Instead of treating devices individually, they segment them based on behavior, purpose, and exposure. 

In other words, security becomes part of the operating model rather than a one-off project.

Today’s regulatory pressure and market reality

The IoT path forward for security teams

Security leaders must begin treating IoT like core infrastructure; the same discipline that governs servers and cloud workloads should apply here as well. That includes visibility, automation, policy enforcement, and continuous monitoring.

The excuse that IoT is too fragmented or too hard to manage is no longer sustainable, because (as headlines continue to show) the stakes are just too high. Devices that control physical systems, handle patient care, or connect to sensitive environments cannot be left to chance.

Organizations that make this shift will find the work gets easier, not harder. Prioritization reduces noise, automation reduces workload, and segmentation reduces blast radius. Over time, IoT security becomes both a protective and a competitive advantage. Customers, regulators, and partners increasingly expect it, and attackers increasingly avoid environments that show signs of maturity. They’ll move on to easier targets with clear security gaps.

The path forward is not about doing everything so much as it is about doing the right things well. That starts with understanding your IoT network environment and maintaining strong passwords, timely updates, clear segmentation, and continuous visibility. When applied intelligently and at scale, these measures go a long way toward neutralizing connected-device threats.