The future of the IoT could bring new technologies and potential we’ve never seen before, including new driverless trucks and cars with sensors that communicate to one another and traffic lights, which could prevent collisions and improve traffic flow in busy urban centres;
when that future will arrive however is up for debate. More than that, the potential for IoT efficiency, speed and data loads will be augmented even more with the advent of 5G data, that operates 10 to x100 faster than 4G, with capabilities to support 1 million devices up to 2 KM and deliver more cost-effective solutions. With 5G and the IoT, these transformative powers could be game-changing across all of our industries.
Security, data protection and privacy are at the forefront of people’s concerns when it comes to the IoT. If this is data is compromised and susceptible to cyberattacks, important private information could go into dangerous hands;
The Global Risks Report actually highlighted this in their 2018 analysis.
Pew Research also suggested a growing trend in the public’s unease with their data being shared and aggregated to third-parties they have no control over. Security policies and legislation will have to work in tandem with these new technologies, and IoT devices and services will need to meet these policies; whether that’s using enforced encryption, user access control or device authentication options.
As the technology builds and becomes bigger and better, the economies of scale will need to accommodate larger data volumes, more complex IT infrastructures and large quantities of IP addresses too. As data is spread further and wider across the globes through the IoT, we could expect to see more nations working to protect people’s data with internet walls which could prevent corporations from accessing the data they need. The IoT puts a great deal of power in consumers and corporations’ hands, and how we grapple with that responsibility will come to fruition in the coming years.