Click Here to Kill Everybody: Security and Survival in a Hyper-connected World

by Bruce Schneier

Our computers and smartphones are as secure as they are because there are teams of security engineers dedicated to writing patches. The companies that make these devices can support such big teams because they make a huge amount of money, either directly or indirectly, from their software—and, in part, compete on its security. This isn’t true of embedded systems like digital video recorders or home routers. Those systems are sold at a much lower margin and in much smaller quantities, and are often designed by offshore third parties. Engineering teams assemble quickly to design the products, then disband or go build something else. Parts of the code might be old and out-of-date, reused again and again. There might not be any source code available, making it much harder to write patches. The companies involved simply don’t have the budget to make their products secure, and there’s no business case for them to do so.