Moving towards a carbon-zero, more sustainable, and digitally insecure world: managing cyber security vulnerabilities within green-tech

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Presented at Chcon 2024 by

Nick Baty

The importance of making more sustainable choices in our daily activities is now deeply embedded within our social practices and is a core part of what we teach our children. Indeed, most modern businesses have ‘green’ policies that underpin regarding how they source products and services, consume energy, and dispose of waste. A good example of this is the growth of the use of highly automated Internet-connected building management systems within the construction of environmentally friendly homes and commercial buildings. Dropping down to the consumer-level, many individuals are also increasingly embracing green technologies in terms of how they live their lives. We are seeing a massively increased usage of electric and hybrid vehicles, e-bikes, IoT-enabled electrified public transport, smart bulbs, and solar-powered Internet-enabled security cameras. However, on closer review, many critical security vulnerability and privacy assurance mechanisms are absent within these increasingly autonomous technologies. Many green tech companies are working on cutting-edge technologies that have not yet been thoroughly tested or implemented on a large scale. This could lead to situations where, if a malicious actor took over an intelligent thermostat or door-locking mechanism, they could create an internal climate which was excessively hot or cold, or remotely disarm a premises door locking mechanisms. Scenarios such as this have physical safety implications for building occupants. They also have serious reputational harm implications for the business owners associated with these green buildings.