The Future of the Smart Home Security Market

The Internet of Things (IoT) is all-encompassing. Any physical object with actuators, software, sensors, or other features that allow for clear communication is fair game for IoT. Every industry it enters has a high potential to be disrupted drastically. Home security is no exception. The IoT security market is projected to reach a value of $31.42 billion by 2022, up from $1.56 billion in 2012.

IoT security doesn’t mean we’re working to create doomsday-proof armored homes (although that’s a cool idea). It means we’re trying to make it easier for devices to communicate and keep us safe. In this long-form, we’ll dive into current cybersecurity threats, big players in the market, and the general outlook for the future of smart home security.

Who Watches the Watchmen?

IoT is growing so rapidly that cloud-based storage companies are scrambling to support their newfound data needs. Companies offering information loss prevention and firewalls are becoming integral for complex IoT systems. Of course, cloud security becomes even more indispensable when it’s defending IoT devices meant to protect you.

Cloud security is expanding rapidly over various verticals, like programming, platform, infrastructure, IT, and more. Key market players at the moment include HP’s development company, IBM, Sophos, Cisco Systems, and more. Security for IoT networks is of paramount importance; without a strong firewall, hackers could easily take over your house’s security devices, creating an incredibly unsafe situation for your family.

One of the most recent mass-scale cybersecurity attacks is The IoT Reaper, known as the IoTrooper. The IoTrooper is a botnet threat that improves upon the Mirai malware, which hijacked gadgets that had weak passwords. Similar to Mirai, the IoT Reaper also capitalized on compromising IoT devices, hence its name. Boston and New York City developers probably remember this as the catalyst behind the distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack, which caused Internet outages across the eastern United States last year.

The threat of another cybersecurity attack is always looming. But regardless of how disastrous these previous hacks have been, they’ll be nothing compared to future ones if cybersecurity isn’t taken up a notch. New research from Forrester forecasts 244 million smart home devices will be in use by 2022. That’s a huge leap from the 24 million circulating in 2016. And Amazon, the current king of the smart home with approximately 68 percent market share, is doing its best to still be on the throne during this strong economic growth.

Amazon Has Some Competition for the IoT Security Crown

Amazon has fought long and hard to stay at the top of the smart home market, and smart home security is no exception. The Seattle-based company recently announced and started shipping its newest product: a security camera that works alongside Alexa and Echo speakers.

Known as the Cloud Cam, it allows you to live-stream your house’s interior 24/7, allows Prime delivery drivers to come inside and drop off your package if you allow it. Its security features include 1080p resolution, two-way audio for communicating with family members or pets, night vision, and sophisticated algorithms utilizing machine learning to figure out if the stranger entering your house is someone you know or a burglar.

With the Cloud Cam, Amazon plans to integrate its technology with thousands of services and delivery companies over the next few years. Amazon’s guaranteed to have a few opportunities open for these initiatives soon, so IoT developers looking for a new opportunity, keep your eyes peeled.

Amazon’s biggest home security competitor, Nest, is expanding its own line-up. Nest, owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet, has more features in its own security camera system than Amazon’s Cloud Cam. It’s certainly a rival in features, but Nest’s system costs more overall. Homeowners with low budgets will lean toward Amazon’s technology when the numbers speak.

Netgear, another competitor, recently released an outdoor motion-detection light for its home security suite of products. Although this device exists already in the form of simple technology from Home Depot, Netgear allows you to customize the light and intensity depending on who or what is outside.

You can have the light turn red if an unidentified person comes into the device’s view, or you can create a warm, inviting light for your dinner guests. Knowing that an ecosystem is just as important as the smart devices that make it up, Netgear made its floodlight integrate seamlessly with Netgear’s full security line-up of security cameras, security lights, and more.

North America and Asia Are Embracing Smart Home Security

Tech titans are already securing some part of the future smart home security market through partnerships. One thing that most home security companies prioritize is integrating with Google Assistant or Amazon’s Alexa. This puts Amazon’s home security products back on people’s minds as they go shopping for their next home security addition.

Crystal Market Research shows that North America currently is the biggest supporter of the IoT security market. Asia-Pacific follows closely in development; Asia-Pacific is looking to add new innovations to the IoT security market, while people in North America are eager to try out these new products, so these two regions occupying a top spot on the list is definitely correlated on some level. It’s inevitable that the market share spreads out to other countries as they warm up to the idea of smart home security technology.

Regardless of what you think about the growing smart home security industry, one thing is certain — when it comes time for you to upgrade your home security, you’ll have a lot of options to choose from.