WHY YOU NEED TO BE AWARE OF THE SECURITY CONCERNS OF AMAZON’S NEW “NEIGHBORHOOD NETWORK”

Amazon has been a leader in the smart home and smart business markets, bringing its Alexa voice assistant functionality to new IoT tools every year. Almost 70% of U.S. smart speaker owners use an Amazon Echo device.

These devices aren’t only in homes. They’ve also migrated to offices, connecting to things like contact lists and calendars to enable voice commands and automations for more efficient business solutions.

Amazon is now capitalizing on the sheer volume of Echo and Alexa-enabled devices out there in neighborhoods around the country by bringing out a new “neighborhood network” called Amazon Sidewalk.

Why should you be worried about Amazon Sidewalk?

For two key reasons:

1. MANY BUSINESSES IN TENNESSEE AND THROUGHOUT THE U.S. HAVE EMPLOYEES WORKING REMOTELY FROM HOME
2. OFFICES ARE INCREASINGLY USING ALEXA-ENABLED DEVICES

WHAT IS AMAZON SIDEWALK?

Amazon Sidewalk is essentially a shared Wi-Fi network of Amazon-approved devices that allow a neighborhood to create a shared low-bandwidth Wi-Fi by tapping into the wireless network of participating devices.

So, if five houses on your block were opted into Amazon Sidewalk through compatible devices, it would create a shared network by using a portion of each home’s Wi-Fi. This network would extend through the area around your homes (or buildings if you use Sidewalk at your office).

WHAT’S THE PURPOSE OF AMAZON SIDEWALK?

The purpose of this shared network is to extend internet reach outdoors over a larger area.

Most indoor Wi-Fis can only reach so far outside. This can cause problems with outdoor devices like security cameras that need to maintain an internet connection, and it can limit where these devices are placed.

Amazon Sidewalk’s purpose is to basically use a portion of multiple wireless networks to extend internet capabilities for specific devices throughout your entire yard, your garage, and even down the street.

WHAT WILL AMAZON SIDEWALK BE USED FOR?

Amazon mentions that some of the devices that can use Sidewalk are:

• AMAZON ECHO
• RING SECURITY CAMS
• OUTDOOR LIGHTS
• MOTION SENSORS

It’s important to know that this isn’t just a regular Wi-Fi that you can tap into from any device. Only the devices that Amazon has designated as “Sidewalk Bridge” devices will be able to use the network.

Another potential use for the network would be in the case of those small IoT trackers used to find everything from keys to pets. They could be much more helpful with an entire neighborhood internet. If they were Amazon approved to use it, that is.

HOW MUCH BANDWIDTH WILL BE USED?

So, how much of your home or office’s bandwidth will Amazon by using to power this shared network?

Amazon states that the maximum bandwidth of a Sidewalk Bridge to the Sidewalk server is 80Kbps and that the total maximum data used by Sidewalk per Amazon account is capped at 500MB per month.

WHY SHOULD YOU BE CONCERNED ABOUT AMAZON SIDEWALK?

First, let’s go through the security that Amazon is putting into place for the Sidewalk network, then we’ll discuss concerns.

The network is designed with multi-layer encryption to help prevent personal data from being compromised by those participating in this shared network. An example of this is that device owners don’t receive any information about devices owned by others connecting to the network.

Now, let’s discuss concerns.

SHARED NETWORKS ARE OFTEN BREACHED

Even with security in place shared public networks are often breached by hackers using “man in the middle” attacks. They simply connect as a user and then use hacking software to compromise other devices on the same network.

All a hacker would have to do is park on the street in the right neighborhood with an Echo device, tap into the network, and they could attempt to hack it.

USERS CAN SHARE APPROXIMATE LOCATIONS

Amazon is giving users the option to “help your neighbors” by sharing the approximate location of their Sidewalk Bridge device. While this would not expose the exact address, it does give a general neighborhood location.

This could point a potential criminal to your home and let them know where to go to try to access your network.

YOU’RE GIVING YOUR WI-FI FOR FREE

Amazon makes a point of noting that Sidewalk Bridge device owners won’t be charged for this service, it’s provided for free. But says nothing about paying owners of devices for the use of their Wi-Fi.

Amazon is basically using a portion of your internet without paying any portion of your internet bill.

DEVICES ARE BEING OPTED INTO SIDEWALK

One of the biggest concerns about Sidewalk is that Amazon is opting in device owners as soon as the network goes live. This means your devices may suddenly be sharing a portion of your network without your knowledge.

It’s a good idea to check your Ring, Echo, or other Alexa-enabled devices to make sure you haven’t been opted in without your permission or knowledge. You can turn off the device’s use of Sidewalk.

WHEN IS AMAZON SIDEWALK LAUNCHING?

Amazon hasn’t given a specific launch date yet but has mentioned launching by the end of 2020.

HOW SECURE ARE YOUR SMART DEVICES?

Smart devices can be one of the biggest vulnerabilities on a network if they’re not properly secured. Unbound Digital can help your Johnson City, Tennessee business ensure your IoT devices are set up and safeguarded properly.

Contact us today to schedule a consultation. Call 423-335-2461 or reach us online.