Ann M Simon

I agree that with the rapid rise of IoT devices there are growing security concerns. While IoT devices provide drastic benefits and more connectivity, more devices creates more entry points for hackers. A lot of IoT devices will also hold data that is very personal and could cause emotional damage if released. Additionally, as we digitize more aspects of our lives, we are giving up more and more personal information that can be stolen.

http://www.businessinsider.com/internet-of-things-security-privacy-2016-8

While the many innovations coming about due to the rise of IoT systems are truly remarkable, it undoubtedly will bring about many new security concerns. While researching some of the home automation systems available today, I noticed that a number of them provide capacity sensors that monitor when someone is home, what rooms they’re in, and keep a detailed track of when and how much each room is utilized. This software is designed to help predict patterns of absence and presence in order to provide better energy efficiency and a number of other benefits. One concern that initially came to my mind was how easily this information could be used against a home owner. If someone on the outside were able to obtain detailed information containing patterns of when a person regularly leaves their home for an extended period of time, it would provide a very clear window for burglary or other crimes to be committed.

We might see IoT products and services like this smart teddy bear begin to receive ratings solely on security. Imagine that when you look on the apple app store or google play store there will be separate reviews for product quality and security if the app is associated with a service. We have to make accounts for everything these days and the issue mentioned with the smart teddy bears will only get more attention as more and more IoT technology comes to market. A solution to this could be a certification system the companies can earn based on how secure their customer’s information is with their services.

At my internship, all the desktops are hosted on the cloud through Citrix. This allows anyone to work from anywhere on any device (external or external to the company). This allows us to be an extremely mobile workforce and have access to all files and reports when traveling or working from home. There is also no excuse for not getting work done due to laptop/computer problems, bad weather, or travel. It would be nice if the company could increase mobile accessibility though. Right now, you can only access email from your phone, and not files or your desktop. It would be nice if we could access files from your phone while traveling.

At my internship we used a cloud based platform to collaborate with each other on different files. This system was not very rigid and operated simply through a server using the windows file system. This had some pros and cons. On one hand, it was a very simple system that all of the employees had a fairly easy time using. It was also not depended on learning a third party system. On the other hand, it was impossible for two people to work on the same file live at the same time. It was also difficult to easily share files with people across different departments (This was somewhat intentional for security/privacy purposes.

At my internship, we used Google Drive for file sharing — a good choice for the small startup that my internship was a part of. It had a fairly small limit (15 GB I believe) but we never even came close to it. Should the startup grow, there is the G Suite for business so that they could upgrade with the growth of the company. Having multiple people working on the same document at once was handy for brainstorming and planning sessions. It works through mobile as well, and the managers were already familiar with Google’s suite.

During my summer internship at Comcast NBCUniversal, we used a more “rigid-style” content management systems called MAX and EDDIE to help manage content for Video On Demand on all platforms. This allowed me to program our promoted collections, update new shows/music/movies and program content ahead of time for special events/programs. This management system was created internally and gets the job done for all 3 platforms. The only issue is that the system constantly would go down or require maintenance. I believe the department would benefit from outsourcing an ECM system so they would not have to waste time and money on maintaining their in-house systems.