New Parks Associates consumer research finds that as of the end of May 2020, more than 40% of US broadband households are still sheltering in place, even without mandates to do so. This finding, from a nationwide survey of 5,008 US broadband households fielded from May 14 through May 28, shows consumers continue to place increased demand on their home network, which raises the importance of data and privacy protections for all households.

The international research firm will discuss current trends in home network usage and security adoption in the upcoming webinar Rethinking Security When We Live, Work, Play at Home,” co-hosted with Bitdefender. The webinar, on Tuesday, June 23, 2 PM CT, will address the current state of security vulnerabilities and threats and how ISPs can become the trusted provider of security for their connectivity and entertainment services.

“Online attacks to the home network can now disrupt work and education along with entertainment and shopping activities,” said Brad Russell, Research Director, Connected Home, Parks Associates. “Increased time online increases exposure to threats, and many households are still working at home and sheltering in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Consumers are also increasingly aware of these threats and are interested in solutions, with nearly 80% expressing concern about the possibility of a data security or privacy breach.”

“While smart devices do a good job of delivering the Internet’s promise to make the world a truly connected place, these gizmos often lack safeguards against targeted attacks. In a six-month timeframe, our honeypots registered more than 7.73 million successful compromises using a combination of usernames and passwords,” said Razvan Todor, Director of Connected Home Security, Bitdefender. “Imagine the possibilities having in mind that more than 22 billion IoTs are currently connected to the Internet.”

The webinar features the following topics:

  • Changing consumer lifestyle patterns, home network usage, and incidence of security and privacy problems
  • Home network vulnerabilities and the advantages in solutions that protect and prevent security threats by proactively keeping consumers safe without requiring their action
  • Opportunities for service providers to integrate with smart home cybersecurity platforms to deliver a full stack of home and mobile security services

Moderated by Brad Russell, Research Director, Connected Home, Parks Associates, this webinar features the following panelists:

  • Alex Balan, Chief Security Researcher, Bitdefender
  • Razvan Todor, Director, Connected Home Security, Bitdefender