Highlights:

  • This year’s study added seven new things: virtual private network gateways, security tools, network attached storage, out-of-band control devices, engineering workstations, remote terminal units, and, strangely, blood glucose monitors.
  • Endpoint protection was also highlighted in the report, which revealed that at least 10% of endpoint protection-equipped devices across all industries are disabled.

Forescout Technologies Inc.’s Vedere Labs released a new report on the riskiest devices on corporate networks in 2023. The report looks at connected device security to better help people understand the threat situation.

In this year’s study, 13 of the 20 most vulnerable gadgets were the same as in 2022. This year’s study added seven new things: virtual private network gateways, network attached storage, security tools, engineering workstations, out-of-band control devices, remote terminal units, and, strangely, blood glucose monitors.

In 2023, the healthcare industry has been identified as the sector with the most significant risk, followed by retail and manufacturing. The government sector was identified as having the greatest risk reduction from 2022 to 2023, with the report noting that this indicates that various industries encounter variable challenges and levels of progress in managing their network security.

In terms of operating systems, Windows and Linux continue to reign supreme across all industries. However, embedded firmware and other specialized operating systems are gaining ground, particularly in the retail, healthcare, and government sectors.

More than 4,000 device vulnerabilities were identified in the report, with the majority affecting information technology devices. Although “internet of medical things” devices were found to have fewer vulnerabilities, 80% of these were categorized as critical, highlighting the significance of adopting stringent security measures across all device categories and quantities.

Endpoint protection was also highlighted in the report, which revealed that at least 10% of endpoint protection-equipped devices across all industries are disabled. The percentage reaches nearly 24% in government and financial services and 21% in healthcare, indicating that even if endpoint protection is deployed, it is ineffective if it is inactive.

The report found that exposed dangerous reports are still an issue, with 10% of devices in the healthcare sector having Telnet ports accessible, significantly higher than in other industries.

The report concludes that “To bypass traditional endpoint security approaches, threat actors are consistently moving to devices that offer easier initial access. Modern risk and exposure management must encompass devices in every category to reduce risk across the whole organization.”