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The world of today is rightly called ‘the age of digital transformation’ where all objects are interconnected via the internet. These interconnected objects can sense, share and communicate information on various IP networks. Coined in 1999, the term Internet of Things has become more relevant and appropriate in today’s time as data collected on these interconnected devices is regularly analyzed, used, managed and planned by various sources.

Due to the rampant growth of mobile devices, focus on data analytics and emphasis on the need and use of cloud computing, the virtual world has effortlessly been integrated into the real, physical world. In 2010, the number of devices and objects connected to the internet were 12.5 billion. According to Cisco, this number is expected to rise to 50 billion in the year 2020.

This integration of both worlds is aimed at improving and enriching our lives. It will pave way for us to make easy, quick decisions such as taking the best possible routes to work or a holiday destination to ordering our favorite meal at a restaurant. Internet of Things aim to transform the health sector from being career-centric to patient centric taking along with it the management and distribution of the food supply chain as well. Governments too are making use of this new technology for better national planning. Enterprises on the other hand have derived tangible business profits from IoT.

There are many technologies associated with IoT that will help organizations in the near future. Businesses need to focus on these skills in order to move in the right direction.

Privacy and Security

The need to have a technically sound and secure system in place is absolutely necessary for the operation of IoT. Hybrid security mechanisms that combine hardware security with software privacy solutions are the need of the day. In order to maintain the confidentiality, integrity and functionality of IoT based systems, certain standardized procedures are essential for businesses.

Rivest Shamir Adleman (RSA) and message authentication code (MAC) protect the confidentiality and authenticity of transaction data between networks. Full disk encryption (FDE) is also performed for user data to prevent unauthorized access and data tampering. Whereas IPsec support is integrated into IPv6 (next generation protocol for the internet) that provides data integrity, data confidentiality and data authentication at the network layer.

Apart from these, certain acts and legislations are passed by governments to prevent personal data against any misuse. Therefore, a holistic approach is very important for IoT to work at different operating levels.

Real-time Analytics

Traditional analytics were performed with the precreation of meta data but new forms of analytics have emerged to speed up the decision making process. This speedy process is extremely important as it relies heavily on the analytic capability technology. In-memory processing is one form of analytics where new data is analyzed and stored in the system for quick decision making. Companies like Microsoft and IBM are already making use of this technology. IoT helps to create room for these analytics and storage of data.

These real time analytics help to understand customer needs and behavior which in turn helps to improve services and deliver quality products to the clients resulting in a flourishing business.

Cloud Computing

Agile and reliable platforms are equally important for the operation of IoT. Cloud computing is one of these platforms. There are three cloud service models namely Cloud Platform as a Service (PaaS), Cloud Software as a Service (SaaS) and Cloud Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). Cloud possesses the ability to connect everything and everyone while on the go and is the only technology that is capable of handling big data and delivering it at the right place on the right time. Companies must make use of these platforms today to bring innovation to the IoT applications.

The basic fundamental that is holding IoT together is connectivity. Proper synchronization of data in today’s interconnected world is only made possible with the help of the technologies mentioned above. IoT is bringing everything under its fold day by day ranging from parking lots, restaurants to ‘smart homes.’ So you need to have these technologies in place to move forward in the digital age. People today desire to lead long, healthy, prosperous and comfortable lives for themselves and their families. IoT has the potential to transform the world for the better. Now it is up to us to see how quickly we can make that leap.