• by Chase Martin , September 7, 2016

Interest in the Internet of Things appears to be increasing and security concerns might not be a deterring factor.

When it comes to IoT security concerns, business executives at the top levels of organizations appear not to be as worried as those at the lower levels.

Almost half (49%) of executives said they believe the benefits of connected devices outweigh the concerns about security, while 34% of IT professionals and 26% of those involved at the lower level of business share that view, according to a new study by CompTIA.

The Internet of Things Trends and Opportunities study, comprising two surveys of 350 IT channel professionals and 512 business executives in the U.S., also found overall IoT favorability to be increasing.

The majority (75%) of channel firms said they view the Internet of Things more positively than they did last year and fewer than a quarter (21%) said their view of IoT has not changed since last year.

“The channel is making significant progress with monetizing the IoT opportunity and, unlike past years, view themselves as strong profitability candidates,” Seth Robinson, senior director of technology analysis at CompTIA, said in a statement.

Almost one quarter (23%) of business executives said they have generated revenue from offering IoT capabilities, an increase from 8% last year, according to the study.

Additionally, one third (33%) said they expect to generate revenue from IoT within the next year.

There are still barriers limiting widespread rollout of IoT initiatives, such as concerns about ROI, technical hurdles, liability, privacy and security, according to CompTIA.

However, the market appears to be moving in a positive direction when it comes to perception of and attitudes about utilizing the Internet of Things.

More than half (57%) of executives said they believe they are well equipped to manage IoT security.

Although almost half (49%) said security and privacy are main factors to consider when implementing IoT capabilities, only 14% said they are serious hurdles to moving forward with IoT initiatives. More than a third (37%) said the benefits of connected devices outweigh those concerns.

General awareness of the different areas of the Internet of Things also appears to be high across the board. Here is the breakdown of level of awareness across IoT segments:

• 78% -- 3D printing
• 71% -- Drones
• 71% -- Virtual reality
• 68% -- Internet of Things
• 63% -- Self-driving vehicles
• 61% -- Robotics
• 54% -- Artificial intelligence
• 46% -- Biometrics
• 27% -- Augmented reality
• 22% -- Chatbots