• by Chuck Martin , Staff Writer, June 1, 2017

It’s commonly known that security is an issue around the Internet of Things, but it may be even more significant than many might think.

Almost half of companies that buy IoT security say they have experienced a breach within the last two years.

The financial impact of the breaches also are significant, representing hundreds of millions of dollars for the largest firms and 13% of the total revenues for smaller companies, based on a new study.

The study comprised a survey of 400 IT decision-makers who have purchased some form of IoT security solution. The survey was across 19 industries and conducted by Altman Vilandrie & Company, a consulting firm.

The good news is that companies are investing in products that defend against attacks to protect against future breaches.

Almost half (46%) of companies say they have had an IoT-related security intrusion or breach in the last two years and slightly more than half (52%) have not. The remaining 2% of businesses say they don’t know.

As might be expected, companies that have not experienced a security breach are dedicating proportionally more (65%) budget to IoT security representing a third of the entire IT security budget.

Companies purchasing security products have several reasons for buying, including protecting customer information. Here are the primary reasons companies buy IoT security:

• 61% -- Prevent loss of control over IoT
• 54% -- Prevent breaches of customer information
• 39% -- Prevent breaches of company data
• 31% -- Compliance
• 16% -- Customer requirement

Smaller companies may feel more pain by a security breach. Companies with less than $5 million in revenue report potential losses of $255,000 on average, were they to experience a breach.  Losses by companies with revenue in excess of $5 billion can reach well above $20 million, according to the survey.

Interesting, for those buyers of IoT security, the most important selection criteria is brand and reputation of supplier, ahead of the products, pricing or additional services offered.