The Internet of Things — is it a dangerous thing?
A simple google search of the Internet of Things returns the following definition —
“the interconnection via the Internet of computing devices embedded in everyday objects, enabling them to send and receive data.”
Although this definition is short, it essentially fails to mention a key factor which the IoT would not exist without — sensors. When a lecturer asked a class of IT students like myself which sensors existed in the latest iPhone, some said camera, microphone, maybe a touch sensor, what many fail to realise is that the iPhone can hear you, see you, recognise your face, recognise how far away from the phone you are, where you are, the temperature, the lighting; the list is endless. When put like this, people are often shocked, sometimes scared at the power big phone companies have over us, yet we continue to buy the latest smartphone every few years, which no doubt collects even more information as the models advance. But as technology advances there are endless possibilities of how this data could be used (and which devices could collect it) to make our lives easier, would we care about the collection of this data if we never had to consider a ‘chore’ again? If our fridges were never empty, our bills were lower and planning manual car journeys were things of the past? With over 17 billion IoT devices already existing, it is likely that the phenomenon will just continue to grow.
Is IoT ethical?
- With sensors constantly collecting data on us, often without us even knowing, can we ever get a sense of absolute privacy? The fundamental principal of IoT being interconnectivity essentially contradicts the essence of privacy — keeping things separate. Morrow explains how the two things are just not compatible, and gives the example of a murder case where the prosecutor attempted to use data collected from an Amazon Echo and the defendants smart meter to build the case. We may say it is unethical to use someone’s private information against them but if it is bringing justice then it is difficult to condemn it.
- There is no question that smartphones are collecting data even when we don’t want them to. As my peers and I have so often noticed, words that have been casually mentioned in conversation appear as adverts on social media platforms moments later. Companies are essentially spying on us for their own corporate gain. From a consumer’s perspective, it is difficult to find a way to justify this, as it seems that big companies look to brainwash us in to buying their products, and there is little benefit to the consumer.
- Data is collected by so many different devices everywhere we go, SocialMediaToday claim that over 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created every day and it’s only going to grow from there. So, what if that data falls into the wrong hands? This type of issue has forced the introduction of the new GDPR laws meaning that it becomes more difficult for companies to obtain data but this will not stop hackers and criminals attempting to illegally access databases. Picture a situation where terrorists gain access to a database containing information on the locations of important people, messages between them, possibly even access to their camera or microphone which are constantly recording. The development of driverless cars which make use of the interconnectivity of the IoT, has already been plagued by the risk of terrorists hacking into them and causing carnage on the roads. The likelihood is, that if digital security doesn’t develop at the same rate as the IoT, we will become increasingly less safe.
Do the benefits outweigh the drawbacks?
- When thinking about IoT we often consider the obvious devices; smart phones, smart houses, driverless cars, IoT actually goes far beyond this and can be used to solve some of the world’s biggest issues. Popescul and Georgescu found that sensors and devices can be used to diagnose illnesses such as AIDS, to detect the level of pollution in water, to be attached to robots which help and save lives in case of disasters and so on. Further to this, I observed a project carried out by McLaren where sensors and IoT devices were used for research in clinical trials for motor neurone disease. Surely, it would be heartless to deny those facing debilitating illnesses, the possibility of making their life better in some way, and with the ever growing concern of climate change, we should welcome devices that can lessen the issue.
- IoT makes our lives easier, often without us even realising, and will continue to as it continues to grow. Here are some of its uses:
- Smart homes: Edmonds and Chandler say this is about connecting the devices in your home so they can communicate with each other and you. This means never having to manually put the kettle on, check what’s in the fridge, turn the heating on, essentially not having to do a household chore.
- Transport: Imagine never having to drive a car again, roads are free of congestion and driving round looking for a parking space is a thing of the past as your autonomous vehicle has already reserved your space for you in advanced.
- Smart Cities: A series of sensors connecting a city through IT to enhance the quality and performance of urban services. However, as James spoke about, Songdo is an example of a smart city where everything has a sensor yet people don’t want to live there. This could be put down to it not being smart enough to do what residents want it to do or possibly some of the ethical issues explored earlier.
However, these uses of IoT which supposedly make our lives easier and better pose the question, do we actually need these devices? Could the introduction of smart fridges for example just make us more lazy as a society? Do we really need food to turn up at our door when we run out? This may just be a case of trying to solve issues that simply don’t exist. Is there really an issue with driving your car to work? Or turning your lights on at the switch?
- Counter to what was preciously said, the argument for more autonomous devices, cars for example, is that robots have no room for human error. Traffic fatalities could reduce by up to 94% with the introduction of autonomous vehicles, with this future generations will be shocked that cars were once one of the biggest killers in the developed world, clearly an advancement for humankind.
Personal Reflection
As mentioned earlier, some people are scared by some of the issues explored in this topic, many don’t like the idea of a completely digitised life with little sense of absolute privacy. Being an IT Management for Business student myself, I do not feel this way. Studying IoT in this course unit has complemented my core modules and I welcome the collection of data as my studies of business intelligence show just how vital it is becoming in the developing world. However, I am fully aware that being a student, I have little information of interest and if, for example, the data from Siri on my phone fell into the wrong hands, hackers would be fairly disappointed! This may not be the case for people with more important and sensitive information. On the other hand, study of personal online presence reminded me of how some things are not for the online world to see and the importance of being aware that once something is posted it is out there forever.
The course gave a different outlook on the words “Digital Society” as at first I just considered social media, but discovered topics going much beyond this. It was interesting to discover how far we have come digitally as a society in a relatively short space of time, making me wonder how far we will go in this time from now. I particularly enjoyed the study of smart cities as this is something that is much further from anything that I would ordinarily study, yet the concepts of it are interesting and it is fascinating to see aspects of this being implemented around the world. I felt that it is unusual for a type of digital advancement to be so focused on environmental issues, and this gave me a different outlook on much of what I study which is almost a hundred percent focused on making a profit. It was enjoyable to explore themes within this course unit, where IT could be used for good causes, rather than just corporate gain. Where before I considered my future doing IT at a big corporation, this has course has given me a different view of how I could use my digital skills for a better cause.
The biggest challenge I faced doing the Digital Society course unit was learning to write blog posts. At first it was hard to find the right balance of being less formal but not too informal, but completing digisoc1 helped me to identify my weaknesses early on. This taught me the importance of using free images and this is now something I am constantly wary of when taking images from the internet, even outside of this course unit. Not only have I learnt a new skill in writing blogs but have also developed my style of writing to become more critical and am satisfied that this can be transferred to other aspects of my study at university.
