Architectural vulnerabilities of IoT devices in the context of side channel attacks

The rapid proliferation of IoT devices, projected to reach 75 billion by 2030, introduces significant security challenges, particularly side-channel attacks (SCAs) that exploit physical leaks such as power consumption and electromagnetic emissions. This paper investigates SCAs targeting IoT devices, with a focus on electromagnetic (EM) analysis. Using a widely deployed IoT camera (Axis M3045-V) as a case study, we demonstrate how attackers can intercept video streams via EM radiation. The experiment involves capturing EM signals with an SDR receiver, filtering noise, and reconstructing video frames using signal processing tools. Results reveal that 89% of static scenes can be recovered at a 30 cm distance, exposing critical vulnerabilities in unshielded hardware components. The study highlights the urgent need for hardware-level protections, including EM shielding, encrypted video protocols, and secure analog-to-digital interfaces. These findings emphasize that IoT security must address both software and physical-layer threats to mitigate risks to privacy and infrastructure.)