The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is looking for input from building owners and operators on how to define security for sensor networks in building management. Their objective is to build a general blueprint for these sensor networks that might apply to all buildings. They hope to establish a security architecture to protect building management system sensor networks, in addition to securing other building networks that the sensor networks might connect to. The end goal is figure out how to be able test the security of these types of networks, and understand how adding sensors to a building management system impacts other aspects of building management security and control. The National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) provides more detail about their request in the post below.
The Internet of Things (IoT) universe is continuously evolving and expanding as new products and technologies are introduced to the marketplace. IoT sensor networks—networks of small devices, or nodes that detect, analyze, and transmit physical data—are a prime example of this ongoing evolution. Fueled by the development of cheaper, smaller sensors and by users’ appetites for more smart and wearable devices, the wireless sensor network marketwas valued at $573 million in 2016 and is projected to increase to at least $1.2 billion by 2023.
IoT sensor networks are especially valuable to organizations for monitoring and reacting to the physical characteristics of a building’s environment, such as temperature, pollution and humidity levels, and electrical usage. People need not be on the premises—sensors do all the work by translating environmental readings into electrical impulses that may make a physical adjustment (e.g., opening air vents to change the internal temperature). IoT sensor networks are the conduit between the physical and digital worlds.
