As organizations accelerate digital transformation, the Internet of Things (IoT) has quietly become one of the largest and most vulnerable components of the modern organization’s attack surface. What were once simple sensors and specialty devices are now interconnected endpoints controlling critical functions across manufacturing floors, healthcare environments, transportation networks, and office infrastructures.
The growth is staggering — and so are the risks. In 2025, enterprises faced an average of 820,000 IoT‑focused hacking attempts per day, a 46% increase from the prior year. Attackers aren’t slowing down in 2026 either, with global telemetry showing continued surges in automated probing, botnet recruitment, and exploitation of default configurations.
Enterprise security leaders are now grappling with a paradox: IoT devices are essential for business growth, but they introduce systemic vulnerabilities that adversaries are exploiting with increasing precision, speed, and scale. According to Verizon’s 2025 Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR), vulnerability exploitation surged 34% year‑over‑year and now accounts for 20% of breaches, with IoT or IoT-adjacent perimeter and edge devices playing a key role in initial compromise. IBM’s X‑Force Threat Intelligence Index also found that critical infrastructure sectors such as manufacturing, energy, and healthcare — industries heavily dependent on IoT — accounted for 70% of global security incidents.
Meanwhile, Arctic Wolf’s own 2026 Threat Report highlights a continued rise in data‑theft‑driven extortion, remote‑access abuse, and identity‑based intrusions, emphasizing that attackers increasingly log in rather than break in, leveraging weaknesses in interconnected systems, including IoT ecosystems.
For CIOs, CISOs, and IT leaders, IoT security is no longer an emerging concern. It is now a core pillar of enterprise resilience.
What is IoT Security?
IoT security encompasses the strategies, technologies, and operational processes used to protect an organization’s expanding landscape of non‑traditional computing devices. These Internet‑connected assets, which are often embedded deep within clinical, industrial, manufacturing, and operational environments, collect and transmit data that is essential to the day‑to‑day operations and performance of businesses across the globe.
Examples range from MRI machines in hospitals to warehouse inventory trackers in retail spaces to assembly‑line sensors in manufacturing plants. Although these devices often appear isolated, they ultimately connect back to traditional endpoints such as laptops, desktops, or tablets, which then feed data throughout the broader network. This interconnected chain enhances efficiency and insight but also magnifies exposure.
Because these devices play critical roles in business operations and often generate high‑value data, they have become increasingly attractive targets for threat actors. As organizations adopt more connected technologies to accelerate digitization, IoT security has shifted from a specialized concern to a core priority.
IoT security efforts can include:
- Conducting full vulnerability assessments on legacy or embedded endpoints
- Modernizing hardware and software supporting IoT deployments
- Deploying continuous monitoring solutions or third‑party managed detection services
- Using device‑level and network‑level telemetry to drive real‑time security decisions
However, achieving strong IoT security is rarely simple. The diversity of devices, inconsistent vendor support, limited patching paths, and operational dependencies make securing IoT ecosystems an ongoing, resource‑intensive process for most organizations.
Common Threats to IoT Security
No matter how small, specialized, or operationally focused it is, any connected device can become a viable attack vector when security controls are lacking. As IoT adoption grows, so does the attack surface, enabling threat actors to use these devices as initial access points, pivot positions, or ransomware deployment platforms.
Common threats facing IoT environments include:
- Firmware vulnerabilities and exploitations
- Weak or unpatched endpoints connected to IoT devices
- Ransomware campaigns targeting high‑impact systems
- Unsecured or tampered physical hardware
- Poor or nonexistent asset management
- Lack of environmental visibility or monitoring
- IoT‑specific malware and botnet activity
- Network‑based attacks and lateral movement
- Unauthorized access to devices or supporting endpoints
These risks are especially critical in industries that rely heavily on IoT. Healthcare organizations frequently depend on connected devices for patient care. Manufacturers rely on them for production continuity. Energy and natural‑resource sectors use IoT for monitoring, automation, and infrastructure performance. These sectors often have low tolerance for downtime, making them prime ransomware targets.
Breaches involving IoT devices also tend to carry higher financial and operational costs, driven by disrupted services, complex incident response processes, and the cascading impact of compromised physical systems. As attacks continue to rise across IoT‑heavy industries, organizations must approach IoT security with the same rigor and strategic commitment they apply when deploying these devices in the first place.
Here, then, are five best practices for security your IoT network against modern cyber threats:
5 Best Practices to Protect Your Business from IoT Security Risks
1. Establish and Maintain a Complete IoT Asset Inventory
Enterprise security begins with visibility and nowhere is that visibility more fragmented than in IoT environments. Across industries, organizations deploy thousands of devices that were never designed with cybersecurity in mind, including:
- Badge readers
- HVAC systems
- Industrial controllers
- Medical wearables
- Conference room equipment
- IP cameras
- Autonomous robots
- Kiosk terminals
The challenge is that many of these devices enter networks without centralized approval, governance, or lifecycle oversight. This creates what’s commonly known as shadow IoT, where security teams lack awareness of device presence, configuration, and risk exposure.
And you can’t protect what you can’t see.
Verizon’s DBIR notes that human error and unmanaged assets contribute to 60% of breaches, reflecting widespread visibility gaps that extend into IoT deployments. CISA ICS data also shows a 40% rise in internet‑exposed industrial devices between 2024 and 2025, underscoring the scale of unmonitored IoT exposure.
To combat this, security leaders should:
- Implement automated discovery tools to detect IoT devices in real time
- Categorize devices by type, lifecycle stage, business criticality, and risk
- Map device‑to‑endpoint and device‑to‑network interactions
- Integrate IoT asset data into SIEM, XDR, and MDR platforms
This inventory becomes the foundation for segmentation, patch prioritization, monitoring, and incident response.
2. Segment IoT Networks to Limit Lateral Movement
IoT devices frequently lack native security features like agent support, encryption, or access control, and cannot be patched with the same speed or consistency as traditional IT endpoints. That makes network segmentation one of the highest‑impact controls available.
To contain breaches:
- Isolate IoT from IT networks
- Restrict communication to least‑privilege pathways
- Eliminate unnecessary east‑west traffic
- Apply Zero Trust controls to machine‑to‑machine communication
Segmentation ensures that a compromised IoT device like a sensor, camera, or controller can’t provide direct access to business systems.
3. Strengthen Firmware, Configuration, and Credential Hygiene
IoT compromise often stems from predictable weaknesses: default credentials, outdated firmware, open ports, and insecure protocols.
Recommendations:
- Enforce immediate removal of default credentials on all connected devices
- Standardize firmware update processes and map vendor support timelines
- Apply secure configuration baselines for IoT and OT device classes
- Require encrypted communication and disable legacy or unnecessary protocols
Effective hygiene closes off the “low‑hanging fruit” attackers rely on for IoT compromise.
4. Implement Continuous Monitoring and High‑Fidelity Telemetry
Most IoT devices lack robust logging. Many cannot run endpoint detection agents. This leaves SOC teams blind unless they collect network‑level telemetry.
IT leaders should:
- Capture device traffic flows, DNS queries, and wireless activity
- Use anomaly‑detection models to flag suspicious device behavior
- Centralize IoT telemetry alongside endpoint, identity, and cloud signals
- Implement alerting thresholds for deviations in device state or function
Early detection fundamentally reshapes incident outcomes, reducing the likelihood of ransomware detonation or privilege escalation.
Integrate IoT into Enterprise‑Wide Security Operations
IoT security cannot succeed in isolation. It must be woven into a unified detection, response, and risk‑management program. NIST’s IoT cybersecurity guidance stresses lifecycle‑centric risk management, requiring organizations to define device security requirements at procurement, deployment, support, and retirement stages.
To operationalize IoT security:
- Incorporate IoT telemetry into SIEM/XDR/SOC workflows
- Implement AI‑assisted triage to reduce alert fatigue and detect cross‑domain correlations
- Build IR playbooks specifically for IoT/OT containment and recovery
- Adopt managed SOC services to provide 24×7 monitoring and unified risk reduction across IoT, cloud, endpoint, identity, and network layers
This transforms IoT from a blind spot into a fully integrated part of the enterprise security posture.
How Arctic Wolf Can Help
Arctic Wolf helps organizations secure their expanding IoT environments by delivering unified visibility, 24×7 threat monitoring, and guided response across the entire attack surface. Our Concierge Security® team correlates IoT activity with network, identity, and cloud telemetry to detect threats early and help drive down risk.
With expert-led monitoring, tailored hardening recommendations, and incident response support built into our service, Arctic Wolf makes it easier to identify abnormal device behavior, contain compromises, and continuously strengthen IoT security maturity.
As the threat landscape evolves, we partner with your team to operationalize best practices, improve segmentation and hygiene, and build long-term resilience so your organization can innovate with confidence, knowing IoT risks are being actively managed.
Discover how the Aurora® Superintelligence Platform delivers trusted, AI-driven security operations across your entire attack surface, including IoT devices.
