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What is the Internet of Things (IoT)?
The Internet of things, or IoT, is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical and digital machines, objects, animals, or people that are provided with unique identifiers (UID's) and the ability to transfer data over a network without requiring humans to human or human to computer interaction.
A thing in the internet of things can be a person with a heart monitor implant, a farm animal with a biochip transponder, an automobile that has built-in sensors to alert the driver when tire pressure is low, or any other natural or man-made object that can be assigned an Internet Protocol (IP) address and is able to transfer data over a network.
Menning of Internet And Things in IoT
The “Internet” refers to the ability of devices to communicate with one another. In many IoT systems, communication between things isn’t necessarily conducted over the Internet. Things may use Internet protocols to communicate with each other. Or, they may use proprietary protocols. However, in most systems, a connection to the Internet is present at some point. Common examples using the Internet involves devices communicating to one of the following:
- A mobile phone
- A gateway device
- An embedded cellular connection
This is true even if the IoT devices themselves don’t use a connection, but when the user’s mobile device does.
And
The “Things” indicates hardware and software that, in the past, performed its function:
- Mechanically.
- With basic electrical circuitry.
- With some isolated computing capability.
- Without a connection to the outside world.
History of Internet Of Things (IoT)
Kevin Ashton, the co-founder of the Auto-ID Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), first mentioned the internet of things in a presentation he made to Procter & Gamble (P&G) in 1999. Wanting to bring radio frequency ID (RFID) to the attention of P&G's senior management, Ashton called his presentation "Internet of Things" to incorporate the cool new trend of 1999: the internet. MIT professor Neil Gershenfeld's book, When Things Start to Think, also appeared in 1999. It didn't use the exact term but provided a clear vision of where IoT was headed.
IoT has evolved from the convergence of wireless technologies, microelectromechanical systems, microservices, and the internet. The convergence has helped tear down the silos between operational technology and information technology, enabling unstructured machine-generated data to be analyzed for insights to drive improvements.
Although Ashton's was the first mention of the internet of things, the idea of connected devices has been around since the 1970s, under the monikers embedded internet and pervasive computing.
The first internet appliance, for example, was a Coke machine at Carnegie Mellon University in the early 1980s. Using the web, programmers could check the status of the machine and determine whether there would be a cold drink awaiting them, should they decide to make the trip to the machine.
IoT evolved from M2M communication, i.e., machines connecting to each other via a network without human interaction. M2M refers to connecting a device to the cloud, managing it, and collecting data.
Taking M2M to the next level, IoT is a sensor network of billions of smart devices that connect people, systems, and other applications to collect and share data. As its foundation, M2M offers the connectivity that enables IoT.
The internet of things is also a natural extension of supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA), a category of software application programs for process control, the gathering of data in real-time from remote locations to control equipment and conditions. SCADA systems include hardware and software components. The hardware gathers and feeds data into a computer that has SCADA software installed, where it is then processed and presented in a timely manner. The evolution of SCADA is such that late-generation SCADA systems developed into first-generation IoT systems.
The concept of the IoT ecosystem, however, didn't really come into its own until the middle of 2010 when, in part, the government of China said it would make IoT a strategic priority in its five-year plan.
How the Internet of Things (IoT) works?
An IoT ecosystem consists of web-enabled smart devices that use embedded systems, such as processors, sensors, and communication hardware, to collect, send and act on data they acquire from their environments. IoT devices share the sensor data they collect by connecting to an IoT gateway or other edge device where data is either sent to the cloud to be analyzed or analyzed locally. Sometimes, these devices communicate with other related devices and act on the information they get from one another. The devices do most of the work without human intervention, although people can interact with the devices, for instance, to set them up, give them instructions or access the data.
The connectivity, networking, and communication protocols used with these web-enabled devices largely depend on the specific IoT applications deployed.
IoT can also make use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to aid in making data collecting processes easier and more dynamic.
Why is the Internet of Things (IoT) so important?
IoT allows devices to be controlled in ways that were not previously possible. In the past, physical proximity was a requirement when interacting with devices. Engineers connected mechanical or electrical devices to perform or respond to a localized physical event. The proximal mechanical connection limited the ways to control the device. Today, microprocessors with advanced communications capabilities are inexpensive and easy to design into products.
Physical and proximal access that constrained past interactions is now performed with a command sent wirelessly or via the wire. This freedom allows things to be controlled in ways not previously imagined. It also allows for the creation of IoT ecosystems. For example, cars, homes, and factories now contain rich collections of IoT devices. They sense and control one another using data rather than rigid mechanical systems.
Data communications provide tremendous flexibility in device use. They eliminate the need for a physical presence or physical connections.
What really makes IoT so important is that we as a society now rely on these connected devices to perform critical functions. Self-driving cars are a good example of something that is safety-critical to many. This includes the occupants of the car itself, nearby cars, pedestrians, and structures. The potential benefit is yet to be fully understood. That also goes for the potential risk of something going wrong.
Advantages And Disadvantages of IoT
Advantages
- Ability to access information from anywhere at any time on any device.
- Improved communication between connected electronic devices;
- Transferring data packets over a connected network saves time and money.
- Automating tasks helping to improve the quality of a business's services and reducing the need for human intervention.
Disadvantages
- As the number of connected devices increases and more information is shared between devices, the potential that a hacker could steal confidential information also increases.
- Enterprises may eventually have to deal with massive numbers maybe even millions of IoT devices, and collecting and managing the data from all those devices will be challenging.
- If there's a bug in the system, it's likely that every connected device will become corrupted.
- Since there's no international standard of compatibility for IoT, it's difficult for devices from different manufacturers to communicate with each other.
Security And Privacy Issues of IoT
The internet of things connects billions of devices to the internet and involves the use of billions of data points, all of which need to be secured. Due to its expanded attack surface, IoT security and IoT privacy are cited as major concerns.
In 2016, one of the most notorious recent IoT attacks was Mirai, a botnet that infiltrated domain name server provider Dyn and took down many websites for an extended period of time in one of the biggest distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks ever seen. Attackers gained access to the network by exploiting poorly secured IoT devices.
Because IoT devices are closely connected, all a hacker has to do is exploit one vulnerability to manipulate all the data, rendering it unusable. Manufacturers that don't update their devices regularly or at all leave them vulnerable to cybercriminals.
Additionally, connected devices often ask users to input their personal information, including names, ages, addresses, phone numbers, and even social media accounts information that's invaluable to hackers.
Hackers aren't the only threat to the internet of things; privacy is another major concern for IoT users. For instance, companies that make and distribute consumer IoT devices could use those devices to obtain and sell users' personal data.
Beyond leaking personal data, IoT poses a risk to critical infrastructure, including electricity, transportation, and financial services.
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