According to AVG who commissioned independent technology market research specialist Vanson Bourne to undertake a study on the topic, Canadian small businesses (98 per cent) believe the Internet of Things (IoT) will bring fresh opportunities for their businesses. While 42% agreed that IoT will mean more time spent dealing with security hacks this was more than offset by the 84% of Canadian respondents who said that human error would continue to give them more concern than smart devices.
The research, which interviewed more than 2,000 small businesses in Canada, Australia, UK and USA also showed that there is much more to do to help them understand what IoT actually means. Of the 250 businesses surveyed in Canada, 61% of Canadian companies understood IoT to be a network of connected devices that are able to communicate with one another. The Canadian result compared to 57% overall.
Asked to list their concerns about Internet-connected devices, Canadian small businesses named their top three as:
- Risk – 58% of the Canadian sample think the IoT will result in their organisation being more open to security breaches or hacking (53% overall, 54% USA). And 44% of those surveyed agreed that security software aimed at IoT would put their mind at ease (overall 57%, USA 65%)
- Complexity – 48% of Canadian respondents said data security would be more complex (48% overall and USA) and 36% said backups would become more complex (33% overall)
- Cost –44% of Canadians said that cost is a reason
A summary of the other main findings in the study were:
- The majority of Canadian respondents, 71%, report IoT as being relevant to their business to some extent (overall 70%, USA 80%)
- Of Canadian respondents, 58% (overall 59%, USA 65%) said the main benefits of IoT will come from increased access and 64 per cent from faster access (overall 60%, USA 66%) to more data. Of the Canadian businesses surveyed 60% see productivity gains (overall 60%, USA 69%) and 54% (overall 49%, USA 56%) said it will help customer satisfaction. However, only 41% of Canadians expected it to help them be more profitable (overall 42%, USA 51%).
- Canadians said the top 5 devices that could present a security threat to Canadian businesses were: IP Phones (68%), CCTV (38%), Factory Equipment (32%), Sensors (29%) and Smart TV (26%)
- The top reasons respondents associated with the Internet of Things that are preventing small businesses from buying and implementing smart devices were cost, ( 44% of Canadians compared to 45% overall, and 48% in the USA), and security (42% of Canadians compared to overall 44%, and 51% in the USA). Lack of demand was cited by 26% of Canadians compared to 26% overall, and 19% in the USA.
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Small Businesses Are Positive About Future Opportunities With The Internet Of Things: AVG
According to AVG who commissioned independent technology market research specialist Vanson Bourne to undertake a study on the topic, Canadian small businesses (98 per cent) believe the Internet of Things (IoT) will bring fresh opportunities for their businesses. While 42% agreed that IoT will mean more time spent dealing with security hacks this was more than offset by the 84% of Canadian respondents who said that human error would continue to give them more concern than smart devices.
The research, which interviewed more than 2,000 small businesses in Canada, Australia, UK and USA also showed that there is much more to do to help them understand what IoT actually means. Of the 250 businesses surveyed in Canada, 61% of Canadian companies understood IoT to be a network of connected devices that are able to communicate with one another. The Canadian result compared to 57% overall.
Asked to list their concerns about Internet-connected devices, Canadian small businesses named their top three as:
A summary of the other main findings in the study were:
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This entry was posted on May 20, 2014 at 8:27 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags AVG. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.