Internet of Things: ETSI unveils cyber security for consumer - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) has unveiled a technical specification aimed at solving all security challenges associated with consumer Internet of Things (IoT), reports ITREALMS.

The documentary tagged ‘Cyber Security for Consumer Internet of Things (IoT),’ and made available to ITREALMS, ETSI noted in the introduction that as more devices in the home connect to the internet, the cyber security of the Internet of Things (IoT) is becoming a growing concern, especially for consumers.

“People entrust their personal data to an increasing number of online devices and services. Products and appliances that have traditionally been offline are now becoming connected and need to be designed to withstand cyber threats,” part of the specification read.

The 16-page documentary produced by ETSI Technical Committee Cyber Security (CYBER), ITREALMS reports, brings together widely considered good practice in security for internet-connected consumer devices in a set of high-level outcome-focused provisions.

The objective of the present document, ITREALMS gathered, was to support all parties involved in the development and manufacturing of consumer IoT with guidance on securing their products.

Additionally, ITREALMS reports that the provisions are outcome-focused, rather than prescriptive, giving organizations the flexibility to innovate and implement security solutions appropriate for their products.

Further, ITREALMS reports that the document is not intended to solve all security challenges associated with consumer IoT. Rather, the focus is on the technical controls and organizational policies that matter most in addressing the most significant and widespread security shortcomings.

ETSI emphasised that as many IoT devices and services process and store personal data, the present document could help in ensuring that these are compliant with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) [i.7].

Also, this document, ETSI said, could help organizations implement a future EU common cybersecurity certification framework as proposed in the Cybersecurity Act [i.13] and the proposed IoT Cybersecurity Improvement Act in the United States.

Chuks Egbune/DoP

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Internet of Things begets rise in cybercrimes – John Bray

ITREALMS:

The Internet community in Nigeria has been reminded that the rise in the Internet of Things (IoT) will bring about increase in cybercrimes, reports ITRealms.

The United States Consul General, Mr F. John Bray, gave this insight in his remarks at the 2017 Cybersecurity Awareness in Lagos, invited Nigerians to visit www.dhs.gov/stopthinkconnect and become active members of the Stop, Think and Connect campaign.

He believes many Nigerians would agree cybersecurity is an important issue, hence, October marks the 14th Annual National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) since its foundation, stressing that the global internet community will lose estimated $6 trillion dollars to cybercrimes, moreso with the “Internet of Things (IoT)” which will continue to increase the amount of crimes we see.

“This national public awareness campaign is a collaborative effort between government and industry that encourages individuals to protect their computers and our nation’s critical cyber infrastructure,” he said.

All around the globe, he told ITRealms that individuals, companies, and governments have become the victims of cyberattacks, which led President Obama in 2009 to call for an increase in education and dialogue about Cybersecurity in the Cyberspace Security Review.

“As part of this policy review, the Department of Homeland Security created an ongoing Cybersecurity awareness campaign – Stop.Think.Connect,” he declared, adding that Stop.Think.Connect. is a national public awareness campaign designed to raise awareness of cybersecurity and to be more vigilant about practicing safe online habits.

By joining the campaign, he said, internet enthusiasts will have connections to partners and subject matter experts who are committed to increasing online safety; cybersecurity tips, messaging, articles, and presentations; monthly discussions highlighting current cyber issues and trends.

“People are spending more time online – at home and at work -- than ever before. Our growing dependence on technology, coupled with the increasing threat of cyber-attacks and risks to our privacy, demands greater security in our online world,” Mr. John Bay said.

Emphasising that by adopting and joining the Stop.Think.Connect campaign, people will better understand the risks that come with using the internet and the importance of practicing safe online behavior.

“Every year, billions of dollars are lost through cybercrimes globally. Cybersecurity Ventures predicts that the global community will lose more than $6 trillion annually by 2021. With the number of internet users growing daily, law enforcement officials expect the number of victims to increase as well as the value of their losses,” he said.

Without good cybersecurity in place, he said, experts estimate that nearly half of the entire G-20 economy will be lost to cybercriminals.

Defining “Internet of Things” as the technology used in Bluetooth and Wireless Fidelity (Wifi) devices in homes, that is likes of refrigerators, dishwashers, and microwaves.

“These devices can be hacked and used in a malicious manner to cause serious harm,” he said, insisting that cyber awareness is everyone’s responsibility.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Nokia, Türk Telekom collaborate to advance 5G, Internet of Things technologies

Nokia and Turk Telekom have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to accelerate the development of Fifth Generation (5G) radio access network technology and the applications that will drive the Internet of Things, reports ITRealms.

Türk Telekom, ITRealms gathered would make its network infrastructure available to Nokia for real-time testing to accelerate the introduction of 5G in Turkey.

5G technology, ITRealms will move beyond simple connectivity to transform networks, delivering massive capacity, connectivity and ultra-fast data speeds - with almost zero latency - to meet the demands of billions of devices, applications and things in the 'programmable world'. With Network Slicing, a 5G network can be tailored to the diverse needs of different industries, enabling the large-scale transformation of sectors such as healthcare, security, automotive, public safety, industrial manufacturing, smart cities and more.

ITRealms also reports that the companies will work together on testing 5G and Internet of Things technologies for tracking, metering, smart cities, smart home and latency-sensitive applications. They will then use their findings to develop 5G-ready solutions that will allow Türk Telekom to evolve its network and be ready for the eventual introduction of commercial 5G services.

Nokia disclosed that in a crucial step towards 5G, they are currently deploying Fourth Generation (4G) Long Term Evolution (LTE)-Advanced technology for Türk Telekom, and the operator has already launched LTE-A services in Turkey. 

Furthermore, Nokia informed that it has been a longstanding provider to Türk Telekom of customer care and analytics-driven solutions from its motive portfolio, underpinning the operator's network with advanced technology to ensure the optimum customer experience. 

The new MoU will see the companies focusing on the development of a cloud architecture for radio and core network technology that can support Network Slicing in particular.

For the Rami Aslan, CEO at Türk Telekom, said "We intend to be a pioneer in the deployment of technologies that differentiate our customer services. Working with Nokia, we have already launched 4G LTE-Advanced in Turkey, and the development of 5G technology will allow us to drive digital revolution, changing the way of life for our customers and growing the economy. We are pleased to yet again leverage Nokia's expertise and innovation leadership."

Ernst Nassl, head of customer business team Turkey and Central Asia at Nokia, said "By signing the agreement with Türk Telekom to develop 5G and IoT technologies, we are taking an important step towards defining the future of mobile networks. Our work with customers on 5G is crucial in allowing us to better understand real network use-cases for this technology and to accelerate commercial use."

+Remmy Nweke (ITRealms) 

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Internet brought positive impact to Nigeria - Folayan

ITRealms:

The President of the Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NIRA) Engr. Sunday Folayan, has said that the Internet of Things (IoT) has brought positive impact on the country, reports ITRealms.

Speaking to ITRealms exclusively, Mr. Folayan noted that both IoT and next generation of technologies would continue to make a positive impact on Nigerian businesses and economy in general.

“… Just as the Internet has brought a very positive impact to the nation,” he declared.

He recalled that a Nigerian online store had reportedly last year, made impressive sales on a boxing day alone, which was more than the annual sales of the average store for the entire year. 

This development, he cited, is an example of the positive impact that the Internet has brought to businesses in the country. 

IoT, he pointed out, would allow Nigerian businesses do more, with less human errors and minimum manipulations. 

Folayan predicted that in the future, “our vehicles will report risky driving patterns to the Insurance companies directly, so that good and decent drivers will get better premiums directly, without anyone assessing them.”

For him, the revolution has just started.

+ITRealms DSA +Remmy Nweke (ITRealms) 
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Samsung, Intel, 4 others team up as Open Interconnect Consortium

ITRealms:

The Samsung Electronics, Intel  have teamed up with Atmel, Broadcom, Dell and Wind River to form a group with to improve interoperability and to define the connectivity requirements for the billions of devices that will make up the Internet of Things (IoT), reports ITRealms.

Also gathered by ITRealms, would be known as Open Interconnect Consortium (OIC) with the aims to redefine connection standards that will ensure interoperability of devices including Personal Computers (PCs), smartphones, wearables and industrial appliances.

A press statement endorsed by Samsung Electronics showed that "The OIC is focused on defining a common communications framework based on industry-standard technologies to wirelessly connect and intelligently manage the flow of information among personal computing and emerging IoT devices, regardless of form factor, operating system or service provider."

Further, ITRealms gathered that some of the outcome could include the specifications capable of making it simple to remotely control and receive notifications from smart home appliances or enterprise devices using securely provisioned smartphones, tablets or PCs. Possible consumer solutions include the ability to remotely control household systems to save money and conserve energy

ITRealms recalls that member companies will contribute software and engineering resources to the development of a protocol specification, open source implementation, and a certification programme, all with a view of accelerating the development of the Internet of Things (IoT).

Remmy Nweke

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ITU to host workshop on ‘Internet of Things’ trends

ITRealms:

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has advanced plans to host a full-day workshop on Internet of Things (IoT) – Trends and Challenges in Standardization, to be held on 18 February at its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, reports ITRealms.

The event, ITRealms gathered will be audio cast; live and archived for media unable to attend in person, with spotlight on emerging next steps for standards developers.

According to Chief, Media Relations and Public Information at ITU, Ms Sarah Parkes affirmed to ITRealms that the event aims to facilitate the global expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) through a better understanding of trends, including standardization needs.

“Results will inform the drafting of the future technical standards (ITU-T Recommendations) that will be fundamental to the smooth operation of networks potentially supporting billions of interconnected devices,” she said.

In addition to examining the status of IoT and machine-to-machine communication (M2M) standardization initiatives across other Standards Developing Organizations (SDOs), ITU says, the event will report on progress of related standards and protocol development in the research and open-source communities.

Also, ITRealms learnt that the event will incorporate exhibits from industry, government, research institutes and academia. STMicroelectronics will showcase its Smart Home concept, and EPFL its OpenIOT project.

Further, ITRealms gathered that Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications (NICT) will display its medical body area network, as well as Yokosuka Telecom Research Park (YRP).

In addition, Daniel Faulk, representing new ITU-T member SAP, will deliver a keynote presentation on Internet of Things, Creating new Opportunities for the Enterprise.

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Pix; Dr. Hamadoun Toure, ITU Secretary General