Internet of Things: From Dreams to an Uncertain Reality
I once dreamed about IoT, but now that it’s a reality, I have many questions.
As a child I always wished to spurt fireballs from my hands, I wanted a cool flip-phone from Star Trek and Power rangers, but more than anything I wanted my Sci-Fi TV shows to become a reality. Now, I’m 22 years old and so many of these things are becoming possible, no, I will never spurt fireballs from my hands but with the invention of software such as Adobe’s After Effects it is entirely “possible”. The flip-phone is an almost outdated piece of technology having hit its glory days in the mid-2000s and now we are left begging… what next?
In July it was announced that the Netherlands had become the first state in the world to create a network dedicated solely to the Internet of Things. One of the first uses of this network is to help track, store and manage the transit of luggage at Schiphol airport, one of the world’s busiest airports based just outside Amsterdam. The hope is that the days of luggage being lost in transit are a thing of the past, only time will tell but at present the outlook is rather optimistic.
So how does this ‘Internet of Things’ network relate to my childhood dreams? In every conceivable way. The Internet of Things is a proposed development of the Internet whereby every object is connected to the Internet in some way or another. From cars, to TVs and even razors, the idea is that applying an Internet connection to these objects will be beneficial to some extent or another, finances aside there is really no reason for the average object to not have connectivity to the Internet, it may sound mundane but bear with me.
In 2014, The BioFeedback Razor 2.0 was announced. It was one of the first razors to consider utilising the Internet to benefit customers. The razor sought to revolutionise a relatively mundane task by giving it a unique digital edge. By attaching sensors and a means to connect to the Internet the razor could improve the users shaving. But most impressively it could (in theory) communicate problems and offer solutions to the shaver by sending the data to an app which could provide an array of information for someone to use at their discretion.
If razors don’t catch your imagination, how about a fridge connected to the Internet? It will tell you when your fridge is running low on products, update your shopping list on your phone and allow you to remotely monitor the fridge temperature and energy usage. Or maybe a doorbell which records people who ring the bell via an in-built camera and motion detector?
The reality is that the Internet of Things will not exclusively affect seemingly mundane objects. The Internet of Things has the potential to revolutionise every component of our daily lives and here are a couple of examples which exist right now and may become more widespread in the future:
The Car — Almost every middling-priced car has some connection to the Internet. This could be in the form of an in-built GPS or a detector which calls the emergency services when the airbags in a car has been activated. You only have to look at the industry leaders Google and Tesla who are developing driver-less cars to see how the Internet is enabling and driving the evolution of the most common method of transport in many developed states. The hope of connecting cars to the Internet is that it will make driving more economical and safer for road users and pedestrians alike by reducing or completely negating the ability for human-error, a leading cause in crashes, and instead allow cars to “communicate” with one another and thereby reduce the chances of crashes.
The Smart City — Cities are constantly evolving organisms, if you look at the transformation of many of your cities over the past five decades in many cases they are almost unrecognisable. The Internet of Things will create the means for the next evolution of cities to occur. The aim of a smart city is to improve the well-being of inhabitants by creating a more personalised city. For example, it could be the case that a notification would be sent to a driver when a parking space is made available. Or waste collection services could be informed when a bin is full, what about a notification which could allow early action on critical infrastructure through early detection of cracks and leaks in pipes? By creating a centralised network of coordinated devices, a city can become a much more personalised, safer and eco-friendly space for inhabitants, visitors and the wider world.
With all the benefits which the Internet of Things can provide to the individual and community, there are nonetheless some significant problems obstructing a more connected future.
Unless the problems are addressed or resolved, there is a real risk that the full capabilities that come with the Internet of Things may never come to fruition in the near future.
One of the biggest threats to the Internet of Things is government inaction. The Internet of Things will require a huge amount of resources, particularly financially on behalf of all levels of governments to ensure the full capability of IoT is foreseen. Governments must be willing to overlook the initial upstart costs and look at the potential long term benefits greater integration can bring to society, but it takes a strong and committed government for this to happen.
Fortunately, governments do not have to solely fund the network, this can be done by private entities and can take a similar model to how public goods are run by private entities e.g. ISPs distributing and maintaining the Internet Infrastructure with government oversight. However, this would be on a much larger scale and improved coordination between the public and private sectors would be beneficial for everyone.
A second threat to the longevity of the Internet of Things is lack of education. Even if a dedicated Internet of Things network is created, there is no guarantee it will be utilised to its maximum potential. Granted, there will always be computer engineers, businesses and government departments which will use the Internet of Things, but the creation and maintenance of the very objects which make the Internet of Things so useful need individuals versed in the technology to help society benefit. The need for educated individuals will not be exclusive to the technological aspects of the Internet either, society will need statisticians who can interpret the data, policy makers to develop policy and oversee the running of the work to coordinate with computer engineers among many other jobs to ensure a massive network can successfully function.
However, the biggest threat to the Internet of the Things is lack of security. Over the past decade cyber attacks have become a norm in the news, appearing every few months from the Sony hacks, to the 2007 Estonia cyber attacks and the worryingly common reports of a mass theft of users data, and with each cyber attack Internet users become increasingly concerned with their online safety. To then propose now that we have a centralised network which could have control over large swathes of cities despite the looming threat of anonymous hackers could draw comparisons with a Skynet-esque narrative. Fortunately however, states and businesses are becoming more privy to the need to protect their digital infrastructure. The British Government has announced a further £1.9billion investment in Cyber Security in addition to setting up a Cyber Security research institute and many states are acting similarly to tackle the increasing threat the digital dimension poses to the well being of states.
It would be naive, however, to believe that the threat of hackers will not be there but that does not mean we should shy away from advancements in revolutionising society. Unbeknownst to many, societies have coped for the past thirty years with critical infrastructure being run online despite the threat of hackers, for example it is known that SCADA systems are a vulnerable piece of technology yet no one has successfully turned the power off quite yet. The Internet of Things provides an incredible opportunity to make the dreams of past generations become a reality, in many ways they already do already exist, but there is a long way to go till individuals and society become truly connected.
Chris J Dennett is the Wonk Bridge Overseas Editor and holds a degree in International Politics at Aberystwyth University. He has experience working with ICANN and holds a deep knowledge of internet architecture
