The world has been familiar with the internet for a very long time. The internet of things, or IoT, is also well known to all of us. Still, to start with, let us first tell you, in simple terms, what the internet of things stands for.
What is the Internet of things?
The Internet refers to the interconnection of computers all over the world. The Internet helps in enabling the exchange of information. On the same grounds, the Internet of things refers to the interconnection of physical objects having sensors, software, and other technologies. The internet of things enables the exchange of information and data with other objects or devices over the internet.
With the passing of time, IoT has grabbed its position as the most important technology of the 21st century. People are now able to connect various objects to the internet, which results in smooth connectivity between humans, procedures, and objects. The internet of things gives physical objects the ability to collect, store, and share information and data with minimum human intervention. Undoubtedly, the internet of things is a technology that has made human life way easier than ever.
Crucial Elements For IoT
However, what needs to be emphasized here is the fact that, along with the comfort, it comes with the risk of a data breach. IoT is made possible by these crucial elements:
Low-cost and low-power sensor technology
The main component of IoT is the collection, storage, and sharing of data. It is only possible because of the presence of effective sensors. The availability of low-cost sensors is making IoT more accessible to manufacturers.
Connectivity
Data sharing essentially requires connectivity between the sender and the receiver. The internet provides IOT with this and makes it efficient and easier to use.
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Platforms for cloud computing
Cloud computing platforms provide us with access to infrastructure, making them beneficial for both businesses and consumers. There are multiple cloud computing platforms providing individuals with this facility. The internet of things comes out as the interaction between the physical world and connectivity. Being such an important aspect of human life, IoT is sure to face several challenges.
Challenges in the Internet of things (IoT)
Through this article today, we are here to share with you the various challenges in the internet of things.
Security challenges
The first and foremost on the list of challenges is security. As the backbone of IoT is data storage and sharing, the biggest question arises about the security of data. Enabling every small physical object with the feature of sharing information may attract multiple raised brows.
Lack of encryption
Encryption sounds like the ultimate answer to security issues. But hackers may manipulate these algorithms and turn a protective system into the most serious loophole.
Lack of sufficient testing and updating
With the increasing market of IoT, production has to be faster. To compete in the race of production, manufacturers lack tests and updates. The main focus of IoT manufacturers now seems to be production, not security. Thus products lack proper and regular testing and updates. This makes IOTs prone to being attacked by hackers.
Weak login details
With every device asking for login details, it may at times turn difficult to produce tough credentials. This leads to easy hacking, wherein the user, out of leniency, fills in weak credentials and login details.
Design challenges
Moving on to another challenge in the internet of things, we come to the design challenges IoT faces.
Battery sizes
Providing users with extended battery life and smaller, handy product is a great challenge for the manufacturers of IoT products. Manufacturers continuously face the challenge of delivering the best in the smallest and lightest products.
System Security
It is also essential to create a design that is robust and reliable. The strength of the product must be maintained from its modeling stage till its deployment.
Increment in cost
With the deployment of sensors in ordinary daily objects, the price shoots up. Although attractive the IOTs are still considered a luxury thus the customers willing to pay large amounts for these products are small. Manufacturers have to keep this aspect in mind while designing a product. They have to manage to keep the pricing of the products under a certain limit to keep it open to a bigger market base.
Timing of launch
It is also essential to solve design problems within the required time frame so that the manufacturer can launch its product onto the market at the right time. Timing plays a crucial role when you are competing in a niche filled with several other companies delivering similar assets and services.
Deployment challenges
Moving ahead, we must talk about the deployment challenges that are a major part of the challenges in the internet of things.
Connectivity
So far, we have learned correctly that connectivity is the backbone of IoT. Without good connectivity, the products are ordinary physical products that have no connection with the technology of IoT. Poor connectivity will lead to no data collection, no data storage, and no data sharing, making IOTs useless.
Cross-platform capability
Technologies change and improve every day. These small improvements every day lead to major transformations. Keeping this in mind, the IoT products must be deployed in such a way that they can keep pace with the new technologies. For IoT products to be of use for a long period, they must be able to cooperate with the new and advanced technologies.
Data processing
IoT products are enabled to collect, store, and share data. But what lies underneath is the very important aspect of data processing. The device may collect a very large amount of data, but the development teams must ensure that the collected data is processed well and stored properly to ensure the smooth sharing of only relevant data.
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Need for skill set
To handle these technical challenges in the internet of things (IoT), skilled manpower needs to be in place. Only those with skills and the ability to think critically will be able to solve the various challenges faced by this forever-changing technology.
However, this does not mean that due to the presence of challenges, we will stop manufacturing or using IoT devices.
Benefits of the internet of things
IoT provides its users with the ability to access information at any point in time, from anywhere, and from any device. Thus, delivering ease of access to information.
As all IoT devices can be interconnected, they ensure improvement in communication between them. leading to the ease of sharing information from one device to another.
IoT is a technology that makes sure that data is transferred from one device to another with the lowest cost possible in the shortest duration possible. This is therefore effective in saving time as well as money.
The internet of things gives physical objects the ability to collect, store, and share information and data with minimum human intervention. This feature of the Internet of Things makes it the least dependent on humans.
Shortcomings of the Internet of Things
IOT enforces data flow. A large amount of data is collected, stored, and shared. Thus, it becomes more prone to attacks by hackers. The advancement in technology has made it possible for every device to be capable of storing and sharing data. Therefore, the chances of a security breach increase exponentially.
Due to the presence of a very large number of IoT devices, the amount of data stored increases massively. This also leads to the fact that a massive amount of data needs processing now. This turned out to be a great challenge for enterprises.
The interconnection of multiple devices, on one hand, ensures the easy transfer of data; on the other hand, it also means the transfer of glitches. If one device develops a bug in its processing, it will eventually corrupt all the connected devices. This property of an IoT device may create chaos instead of ease for the user.
The IoT devices developed by different manufacturers have no fixed standards of compatibility. Thus, it may be difficult for devices from different manufacturers to communicate and work together effectively.
Internet of things may pose a risk to your personal information and data privacy, such as lack of encryption, lack of proper testing and updating, weak login details input by the user, system security, increment of cost, connectivity, cross-platform capability, and data processing of large sets of data.
What are the potential solutions to the challenges of the internet of things?
The internet of things devices bring with them a long list of challenges. However, this does not mean that we should stop manufacturing and using them. These challenges can be overcome to some extent with easy solutions in place. Solutions to multiple challenges may include proper collection and management of large-scale data, encryption of user data, routine tests of IoT devices, and release of relevant updates from time to time.
As the internet of things is all related to data collection, storage, and sharing, therefore, proper data collection and management is of prominent importance to solve multiple problems.
1. Data collection and management
IoT devices store an enormous amount of data, which makes breaching easy. However, if proper management practices are in place, data breaching can be checked and data can be protected effectively under the data privacy law.
As mentioned earlier, storage and sharing of a large amount of data is a serious challenge. These may be serious problems, but they are surely solvable. The advancement of technology now provides us with the next generation's 5G mobile network. This generation of mobile networks provides us with the performance required to share a large amount of data efficiently. Along with it, the development of cloud computing delivers extended infrastructure to support greater storage.
2. Timely and regular tests
Timely and regular tests accompanied by relevant updates. Before releasing IoT products into the market, it is of prime importance that the devices are tested properly. Checks should not be restricted to the pre-release period and must continue even after launch. Continuous checks of devices are essential to ensure that the device does not develop any glitches in the meantime. Regular checks also reveal the need for updates if required, which ensures that the product is delivering its best service at any point in time. It also makes sure that the system is bug-free.
3. Strict data encryption
Complete data security cannot be ensured, and users must be aware that if they are sharing their information on a device, then it is prone to breach at some or other point in time. However, the best that can be done is to encrypt data both at rest and in transit. Encryption will ensure that there is the least number of doors open to the data stored. It also makes sure that a minimum number of individuals are allowed access to it.
Apart from that, the user must ensure that effective and relevant anti-virus, anti-malware, and firewalls are in place to check any irrelevant activity.
Conclusion
The internet of things enables the exchange of information and data with other objects or devices over the internet. It gives physical objects the ability to collect information and data with other objects or devices over the internet. It gives physical objects the ability to collect, store, and share information and data with minimum human intervention.
The list of benefits that the internet of things devices deliver to their users is as mentioned: access to data and the interconnection between multiple IoT devices that makes data sharing cost-effective and faster with the least intervention.
Along with a long list of benefits, it also brings with it a few demerits. Such as it puts user data at risk of breach and generates an enormous amount of data. A glitch in one device may bring the risk of developing bugs in other connected devices, and IoT devices manufactured by different enterprises may not communicate and work effectively together.
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