Title: Turning Internet of Things(IoT) into Internet of Vulnerabilities (IoV) : IoT Botnets,
Abstract: Internet of Things (IoT) is the next big evolutionary step in the world of
internet. The main intention behind the IoT is to enable safer living and risk
mitigation on different levels of life. With the advent of IoT botnets, the
view towards IoT devices has changed from enabler of enhanced living into
Internet of vulnerabilities for cyber criminals. IoT botnets has exposed two
different glaring issues, 1) A large number of IoT devices are accessible over
public Internet. 2) Security (if considered at all) is often an afterthought in
the architecture of many wide spread IoT devices. In this article, we briefly
outline the anatomy of the IoT botnets and their basic mode of operations. Some
of the major DDoS incidents using IoT botnets in recent times along with the
corresponding exploited vulnerabilities will be discussed. We also provide
remedies and recommendations to mitigate IoT related cyber risks and briefly
illustrate the importance of cyber insurance in the modern connected world.