The IoT Explosion
It usually begins innocently. Someone installs a “smart” coffee machine in the breakroom, another person connects a smartwatch to the corporate Wi-Fi, and suddenly your company network has devices you didn’t sign up for. One by one, they add up until your infrastructure starts looking more like a gadget showroom than a secure IT environment.
The growth of IoT
The numbers are almost scary: 30 billion connected devices predicted by 2030. Enterprises are leading this explostion, from hospitals and banks to factories and schools.
The appeal is undeniable:
- No need to copy your documents to an USB for printing, you just send them straight to the printer.
- Efficient energy usage with smart lights that are only turned on when someone is in the room.
- Sending a message to the coffee machine so you don’t have to wait 30 seconds in front of it while it brews your drink.
But on the flip side:
- Devices often come with weak security settings (hello default passwords 1234).
- Many never receive proper updates or patches.
- They create a hidden attack surface that grows faster than IT can track.
Why governance is the missing piece
This is the IoT paradox: efficiency versus risk. Traditional defenses like firewalls or antivirus won’t help if you don’t even know how many and what kind of devices are out there. The solution isn’t to unplug everything and go back to the stone age. It’s putting governance in place — the rules, accountability, and visibility that let organizations treat IoT as company assets rather than random gadgets.
The Unique Risks of IoT
Outdated or Missing Updates
Unlike laptops or servers, IoT devices rarely follow regular patch cycles. Many ship with outdated firmware, and when flaws are discovered, they often remain unpatched indefinitely. Some vendors abandon devices altogether, forcing organizations to keep insecure hardware running.
The impact:
- Known exploits can remain open for years.
- Legacy devices become permanent weak spots in the network.
Weak Authentication
IoT devices are famous for default usernames and passwords. If these aren’t changed at installation — and they often aren’t — attackers can walk right in. Once compromised, the device becomes a trampoline into more critical systems.
Typical outcomes:
- Easy brute-force or credential stuffing attacks.
- IoT acting as a gateway into sensitive infrastructure.
Data Privacy Concerns
IoT systems like connected cameras to medical devices collect sensitive data at scale. If traffic isn’t encrypted or configurations are inadequate, this information can spill far beyond the organization. Beyond security risks, this creates serious headaches for GDPR and sectoral compliance.
Shadow IoT
Not all risks come through procurement. Employees often connect personal gadgets — smart speakers, watches,… — without IT’s approval. These unmanaged devices become invisible risks that traditional defenses rarely catch.
Why it matters:
- Creates blind spots in asset inventories.
- Makes compliance frameworks like ISO 27001 or NIS2 harder to uphold.
Why Governance Matters
The Limits of Technical Fixes
When organizations talk about IoT security, the focus often falls on technology: firewalls, intrusion detection, or network monitoring. These are important, but they don’t solve the governance gap. If you don’t know how many IoT devices you have, where they’re located, or who is responsible for them, no amount of technical hardening will close the holes.
IoT as Business Assets
One of the mistakes companies make is treating IoT as consumer gadgets rather than critical business assets. A smart camera is not a random piece of hardware — it’s part of your physical security system. A connected sensor is not a convenience — it may be essential for compliance or customer safety. Thinking of IoT this way changes the conversation: these devices almost require the same level of oversight as servers, databases, or cloud platforms.
This means organizations need to:
- Maintain an accurate inventory of devices.
- Assign ownership and accountability.
- Link IoT assets to processes they support.
Governance as the Missing Layer
The real value of governance is that it introduces structure. Instead of chasing vulnerabilities one device at a time, governance ensures IoT risks are part of the wider risk management process. Policies dictate how devices are onboarded, who approves them, and what happens when they’re retired. Monitoring ensures compliance is ongoing. And accountability means there’s always someone responsible for the devices that quietly run in the background.
Governance doesn’t replace firewalls or monitoring tools, but it does makes them effective. Without it, IoT remains a chaotic basket of objects. With it, IoT becomes a manageable and secure layer of your business infrastructure.
How Brainframe Helps Govern IoT Risks
Centralized IoT Asset Management
The first step in IoT governance is visibility. If you don’t know what you have, you can’t secure it. Brainframe gives organizations a centralized inventory where every type of connected device — from smart cameras to industrial sensors — is tracked. Each asset can be mapped to the business process it supports, giving context that goes beyond “another device on the network.” This allows companies to see not only what’s connected, but why it matters. It also allows you to create your own type of device with the specific properties you want them to have.
IoT Risk Register
IoT devices introduce risks that are different from traditional IT. Outdated firmware, weak authentication, and data leakage need to be tracked systematically. Brainframe’s risk management module lets teams identify and log these risks, assign likelihood and impact scores, and connect them directly to controls.
Example IoT risks organizations can log in Brainframe include:
- Devices running on unpatched firmware.
- Vendor-provided hardware with default credentials.
- Smart tools that collect sensitive data without encryption.
Vendor and Third-Party Oversight
Many IoT devices come from third-party vendors, and their security posture directly affects your own. Brainframe’s vendor management module helps track supplier risks, document due diligence, and link IoT vendors to the assets they provide. This creates a clear line of responsibility when evaluating compliance with frameworks like ISO 27001 or NIS2.
Practical Example: IoT Security in Healthcare
The Scenario
Imagine a mid-sized healthcare clinic that installs smart security cameras to monitor patient areas and protect sensitive medical equipment. The cameras are cloud-connected, managed through a vendor’s portal, and integrated into the clinic’s daily operations. At first glance, they’re just another facility upgrade. In reality, they’re a new IoT security challenge.
The Risks
Healthcare organizations are prime targets for attackers, and these IoT cameras quietly expand the attack surface. A single unpatched device or weak credential could allow attackers to hijack the feed, gain access to the network, or even access patient data indirectly. Beyond the technical risks, there are compliance concerns too — breaches could violate GDPR and undermine trust in the clinic’s ability to protect sensitive information.
The key risks in this scenario include:
- Unauthorized access to camera feeds and patient areas.
- Data privacy violations if video streams are intercepted.
- Vendor mismanagement of cloud infrastructure.
Governance with Brainframe
This is where Brainframe’s governance capabilities make the difference. In the platform, the clinic can:
- Register the camera in the IoT asset inventory and map it to the physical security process it supports.
- Log risks like “outdated firmware” or “vendor-managed cloud exposure” in the risk register, scoring them for impact.
- Evaluate the camera vendor’s security posture through vendor management, ensuring proper due diligence.
The Result
IThe cameras become governed assets instead of an unmanaged liability. By integrating IoT into risk and compliance workflows, the clinic ensures both patient safety and regulatory alignment. The devices still deliver their intended value — but now with IoT risk management built into the bigger security picture.
The Road Ahead: IoT and Regulation
A New Wave of Rules
Fortunately (or not, depending on the point of view), the era of unregulated IoT is coming to an end. Governments and regulators have realized that connected devices are not toys or conveniences — they’re part of the IT infrastructure. In the EU, the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) sets strict requirements for connected products, while NIS2 expands the definition of essential services to include organizations heavily reliant on IoT. For industries like healthcare, finance, and energy, this means IoT security is a compliance mandate.
What Organizations Must Prepare For
These future regulations require proof of governance and accountability of IoT devices. This means organizations need to:
- Maintain visibility over all IoT assets in their environment.
- Demonstrate risk management processes that include IoT-specific threats.
- Ensure vendors meet baseline security standards for connected products.
These expectations align closely with broader frameworks like ISO 27001 and the CIS Controls, but with an IoT twist: continuous monitoring and lifecycle management matter as much as initial deployment.
How Brainframe Fits Into the Future
Brainframe is designed to bridge this regulatory gap. By embedding governance of these IoT devices into its risk registers, vendor management, and compliance workflows, organizations can be prepared for the upcoming requirements. Instead of panicking when auditors ask which connected devices are in use, teams can pull a governed inventory and show how each risk is mapped to controls.
The shift toward secure-by-design IoT will only accelerate. Organizations that build governance practices now — with platforms like Brainframe — will gain a competitive edge by showing customers and regulators that they take IoT security seriously.
