Israeli IoT tech startup Sternum officially granted a new patent in the U.S. to keep IoT devices safe and prevent billions of annual malware and ransomware attacks

In 2019 alone, there have been over 7.2 billion malware attacks and 151.9 million ransomware attacks globally. This number is set to increase as the number of connected devices grows exponentially. Numerous enterprises, consumers, and healthcare devices are left to their own internal vulnerability, creating the perfect opportunity for cybercriminals to compromise devices like routers, smart technology, and even medical devices.

Sternum is a Tel Aviv, Israel-based IoT startup working to address these problems. Sternum has built a holistic, highly scalable endpoint security solution for IoT devices, that prevents attacks in real-time. The startup also works on a deeper exploitation layer with the understanding that if a device is not exploitable, it’s not vulnerable.

Today, Sternum announced that its Dynamic Memory Protection is officially patented by the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office. This solution monitors and thwarts instant cyberattacks rather than relying on passive detection and patching off vulnerabilities that may never become exploitable. The Dynamic Memory Protection layer focuses on one of the top threats on IoT devices – memory-based vulnerabilities, helping companies protect their data and users.

Founded in 2018 by Arik Farber, Boaz Shedletsky, Lian Granot, and Natali Tshuva, Sternum’s solution identifies attacks in IoT devices in real-time with less than one percent overhead, sparing R&D departments hours of work and wasted resources patching vulnerabilities that may never become exploitable.

Its team consists of highly experienced research, development, and business leaders with a mission to fundamentally change the world of IoT security. Bringing profound knowledge in embedded systems, the joint perspectives of the defender and the attacker, and an aspiration to alleviate the medical security standard, Sternum not only set out to build uncompromising innovative technology but also to create true impact.

As the internet continues to intrude more on our daily lives in the form of IoT devices in grocery shops, hospitals, and our homes, sophisticated hackers and state-level attackers have more entry points into large swaths of data. A 2019 report from Akamai predicts a rise in weaponized cyber attacks throughout the next few years, and organizations across the globe are scrambling to keep up. An attacker that can hack a patient’s EKG machine, for example, might be able to gain access to the entire hospital’s network—including patient files, medical history, and payment information. Sternum’s newly patented technology monitors and blocks those attacks in real-time, and its Dynamic Memory Protection layer is focused on one of the top threats on IoT devices – memory-based vulnerabilities.

Any time an attacker attempts to exploit a vulnerability, he or she leaves a digital fingerprint that is distinctly recognizable and identical across all attacks exploiting the entire classes or families of vulnerabilities. Sternum’s Dynamic Memory Protection leverages technology to track, identify, and locate that unique “Exploitation Fingerprint™,” flagging the presence of a hacker and preventing the attack itself regardless of the memory-based vulnerability that is attempted to be exploited. With the additional security protection layers of Sternum’s solution, active mitigation against the widest range of threats is achieved. The solution is the first to install real-time, proactive cybersecurity on any pre-or post-production device through a simple software update with no changes needed to existing code and is already deployed in scale in highly regulated industries.

Sternum also provides users with a cloud-based data analytics system and is the first company to provide actionable visibility into the security and behavior of IoT devices. Currently, many connected devices lack adequate security protection, and manufacturers remain unable to capture valuable data points from devices in operation. The Analytics and Detection System (ADS) unlocks hidden data-points from within the device and investigates all suspicious events and breach attempts, as well as accumulates insights into said device’s internal operations, software functions, quality analysis and third-party code.

“We are glad that top regulatory bodies have recognized our Dynamic Memory Protection technology through this patent,” says Natali Tshuva, CEO & co-founder of Sternum. “IoT devices are shaping our future, and existing security approaches are inadequate to the unique IoT environment and limitations. At Sternum, it is our mission to innovate and bring military-grade security to each and every embedded and IoT device to make sure our critical infrastructures, medical devices, smart cities, and more are properly secured. ”