What Is the Internet of Things (IoT)? Everything You Need to Know

The IoT/Internet of Things is a phrase you’ll hear everywhere if you follow current developments in technology. It refers to the vast network of “smart” devices, from a Web-enabled doorbell camera to an intelligent dishwasher. If it’s inside an electrical enclosure and connects to the Internet, you can be pretty sure that it’s a part of the Internet of Things.

Here’s the thing about the Things that make up this Internet: They’re getting much more numerous and more critical in our daily lives. Don’t let that scare you, though. There are tons of beneficial applications for IoT devices, so long as you know how to use them safely.

Need to get up to race on the tech trends of IoT quickly? Here’s your five-minute primer on this burgeoning field of tech.

1. What Is IoT?

Smart devices form the basic units of the Internet of Things. (See the next section for a list of everyday devices.) Each intelligent device connects to the broader Internet, and these intelligent device networks (and their connections) are collectively transferred to as the Internet of Things.

The fundamental purpose of intelligent devices and IoT is to allow people to control and monitor the functions of their world in new ways through devices equipped with sensors and an Internet connection. It’s a relatively simple concept with a vast range of applications. Intelligent machines can handle controlling lights, housing an Alexa-like voice assistant, or collecting fitness information from your workout.

Most IoT devices connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi, but it’s also common for IoT devices to use other wireless protocols, such as Bluetooth and Zigbee. Remote operation is a standard feature for intelligent devices and typically comes in a connected mobile application.

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2. Common IoT Devices

In many highly developed countries, like the U.S., IoT devices are already near-ubiquitous. These are some of the ones that you’ll find just about everywhere:

Voice Assistant Speakers: Web-enabled intelligent speakers like the Amazon Echo and Google Home are now constant companions for many people in their residences. These devices often serve as smart home hubs that allow users to control other smart devices in the home.

Personal Fitness Trackers: Fitness trackers like the Fitbit can monitor heart rate, steps per day, and other health and lifestyle factors.

Smart Lighting: These systems allow you to control your lighting remotely from your mobile devices, measure energy consumption and develop custom lighting schemes and routines that always give your space the perfect ambiance.

Smart Thermostats: A intelligent thermostat automatically tracks and analyzes energy consumption. As with intelligent lighting, most can be controlled remotely through apps.

Smart Security Systems: Many home and business owners equip their properties with intelligent security systems like the popular Ring doorbell cameras. These systems usually offer features like remote monitoring and programmable routines.

Smart TVs: These popular TVs include features like built-in access to streaming services, and many also work with voice assistants like Alexa.

Wi-Fi Routers: Wi-Fi is an essential part of the Internet of Things, and routers distribute Wi-Fi networks to the devices that need them. When placed in a suitably rated outdoor enclosure, such as a NEMA 4X enclosure, Wi-Fi routers can even be deployed outdoors.

Many of these technologies are most visible in our homes today, but they’re also gaining widespread use in businesses. A smart thermostat that helps save on heating bills is just as valuable for a business as it is to a homeowner. But beyond that, increasing numbers of businesses also use IoT technologies like smart inventory systems, GPS sensors for delivery vehicles, and even drones.

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3. What Are the Advantages of IoT?

IoT offers numerous opportunities for business owners, governments, and ordinary people. These are some of the use cases where you’ll find the Internet of Things at work:

Smart homes are making many people’s lives more convenient and more connected. Many homeowners have improved control over their energy consumption, security, and home aesthetics, thanks to smart homes.

Businesses can use data collected through IoT to streamline and improve their operations. More competent inventory management, pinpoint shipment tracking, and new ways to target customers are all on the table.

Intelligent sensors can help protect expensive property for both businesses and individuals. A homeowner can detect whether they have a water leak through IoT sensors, and a semi-truck owner can detect when an engine part is near failure.

IoT health tools allow patients and providers to adopt a more collaborative and analytical approach to their relationships. Data collection through medical wearables (and even cutting-edge technologies like swallowable sensors) presents some exciting opportunities for data-driven medicine.

Naturally, these advantages all assume that IoT devices are being deployed securely and responsibly. When they’re not, users can open themselves up to some significant vulnerabilities.

4. What Are the Risks of IoT?

Safe technology use requires you to know the risks, and IoT certainly has some of its own. Thus far, the most significant dangers of IoT have emerged in two main areas: security and privacy. We’ll tackle each in turn.

For many people and organizations, data security is the most significant current area of concern in IoT. Why? IoT networks and devices are juicy targets for cybercriminals since they’re often poorly secured and potentially packed with personal information. Many IoT device owners don’t take all the recommended security steps with their devices, such as regularly changing passwords or even changing default passwords after setup.

Data privacy, however, is a related issue that’s increasingly shaping up as a significant regulatory battleground. It poses numerous thorny questions: What privacy rights do IoT users have when it comes to data that they willingly submit? Is it unfair to give advantages to those who give up some privacy rights, such as providing health insurance discounts to employees who wear fitness trackers? These are questions that we’ll have to face very soon.

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IoT is surely one of the most powerful technologies of the new millennium. Like most technologies, it offers solutions for many problems while creating a few critical new issues of its own. So long as you’re aware of both, IoT will continue to provide tons of ways to enhance your life.