It is no secret, as revenues from LEDs fade, that the lighting industry is placing a big pile of gambling chips on the success of the Internet of Things, but the hack marks the second major security breach in as many months, suggesting IoT is not yet ready for the big leagues.

A handful of the world’s top websites were targeted during the attack, including The New York Times, CNN and Amazon, making this the most high profile attack to date and one aimed at disrupting the very fabric of the internet in the United States.

The attack was carried by hijacking thousands of IoT devices, which had previously been infected with malicious code allowing attackers to take control of them. The attackers were then able to perform a denial of service (DDoS) by getting the enslaved devices to flood the chosen websites with messages, causing them to crash.

While a claim of responsibility is yet to be made for the attacks, it has been claimed on Twitter that WikiLeaks were responsible.

A tweet issued by WikiLeaks after the DDoS attack on some of the world’s leading websites.

Earlier in the month American internet provider OVH was targeted in an attack that involved the manipulation of 150,000 IoT devices.

‘Companies are simply not doing enough to improve IoT security and there is a lack of awareness and a certain laziness in their attitude towards the issue,’ Ken Munro of ethical hacking firm Penetration testing and security services, which identifies weaknesses in internet security, told Lux.

The IoT powered onslaughts are worsening because of the release of the Mirai botnet source code into the public domain. The code contains the necessary information needed to hack into IoT devices and ultilise them for use in DDoS attacks.

Security experts are worried that IoT devices are being built upon outdated operating systems using code that has not been properly tested for security loopholes, which hackers will exploit. The devices are then being rushed to market.

Munro believes that IoT manufacturers need to act now to prevent much more serious security breeches in the future.

‘Governments are becoming more and more concerned about the security risks that IoT poses, and the UK, US and EU governments are even considering legislation to compel firms to act,’ Munroe concluded.

The US Congress, for example, is currently mulling installing some kind of consumer protection into law to protect IoT consumer’s privacy, although talks are still at a very early stage, calls to act though are likely to speed up after this latest attack.

Although the smart lighting market has been growing, it is still often confined only to expensive, high end, products.

Ikea’s TRÅDFRI LED fixture is simpler than many of the already established smart lighting products on the market.

‘The new luminaire has been developed after research showed that small changes in lighting can have a great impact on people’s well-being and intellectual abilities,’ a spokesperson for Ikea commented.

Ikea’s smart luminaires are simple screw-in fixtures that are able to sit in pendant lights and lamps.

The plug and play solution features a tiny transmitter that has been installed within the luminaire, which can communicate with a remote control.

The remote device is able to control up to ten LED light sources around the house and can adjust lighting levels from a warm yellow glow all the way through to ‘full beam’ brightness.

It will also be possible to control the lights using a smartphone app but this will require a hub, similar to the Philips Hue, which allows users to change the brightness levels of their lighting.

The luminaires will be available to buy in stores in April next year. Ikea has not yet put a price on the light sources, but it is expected that they will be affordable and in line with current prices at the budget retailer. Ikea intends to extend their smart lighting range further in the future to include light panels.

Scientists use pulses of light to end heart attacks. PLUS: Verizon eyes city revolution with LED purchase. AND: Meet ‘Alexa’….Amazon’s new device that can control your home lighting. Lux Today September 20th 2016.

Smart traffic lights to ‘communicate’ with drivers to inform them when they are about to change. PLUS: Saudi scientists create ‘fastest li-fi luminaire’. AND: New building standard aims to protect the health of occupants.

 

Rejuvenating light clinic opens at Harvey Nichols in London. PLUS: LED farm produces 12,000 lettuces a day. AND: GE biosensors monitor athletes at Rio Olympics. Lux Today August 16th 2016.

 

Sustainable lighting

The three-floor, 9,000 square meter garage has 1,500 parking places. The original existing lighting installation was divided into 4 zones per floor, each lit with traditional batten luminaires, each housing a 1 x 58W T8 fluorescent tube. When a car entered the garage, the lighting operated at 100% of its full output for two hours, before switching off completely. The lighting quality was poor, and the luminaires were starting to fall apart. When it came to the renovation, Klövern AB didn’t just want to replace the fluorescent lamps with LED lamps. The company wanted something more sustainable. “We’re highly committed to sustainability, so it was very important that we installed a ‘future-proof’ lighting system,” explains Lennard Lindkvist, Energy Manager at Klövern AB.

“We wanted a lighting installation that would produce bright, well-distributed white light, so the garage felt safe and secure for our customers. But at the same time, we wanted a smart, energy-saving system that would help reduce our operating expenses.”

Klövern AB wanted to avoid the cost of replacing the cabling, meaning that the new LED luminaires had to be the same length as the existing fluorescent lamp luminaires. “After exploring various options on the market, we decided that the GreenParking system from Philips, which couples Pacific LED waterproof luminaires with wireless control, was the best long-term solution from a sustainability perspective,” continues Lindkvist. “We replaced the luminaires and kept the cabling, which saved significant labor and material costs.”

GreenParking is an easy-to-install, full lighting system: PacificLED luminaires paired with wireless movement detectors create a complete and controllable wireless lighting system, which enables the luminaires to communicate with each other and behave according to how they are programmed. “For the new lighting installation, the parking garage was divided into 13 zones per floor and more than 120 wireless movement detection sensors were mounted in strategic locations” says Lindkvist. “Unlike with our previous system, we’re only paying for lighting when it’s needed. When a car or pedestrian enters the programmed ‘zone’, the lighting comes on to 90% of its full power. When the car or pedestrian leaves the area, the output drops to 10% after 2 minutes”. “The LED lighting produces a crisp white light – essential for customers to feel safe and secure. And because Pacific LED luminaires are IP65 class rated, we know the luminaires are tough enough to withstand the exhaust gases.”

For Klövern AB, it was crucial that the new lighting system saved energy and cut operating costs: “Energy consumption is a major business expense for us – but also one we can address by investing in new technology. With every penny we save on energy, the property becomes more profitable”. “We’ve cut energy consumption by more than 50%. The LED luminaires account for 75% of the energy savings, the lighting controls 25%. “We’ve saved 350,000 kWh per year by switching to the Philips GreenParking system. In fact, we save as much energy as 17 houses consume every year.” The long life span of the LED luminaires means Klövern AB will also reduce its maintenance costs: “With the old system, we had to replace the fluorescent lamps every other year. The new LED modules won’t need replacing for 15 years. This not only saves time and money – it makes us a more environmentally friendly company as well.”

Contact us at www.novelenergylighting.com, T: 0208-540-8287, E: sales@novelenergylighting.com to discuss LED retrofit options for your car parking or outdoor lighting facilities.