Big Data & IoT
Why do I see ads in phone apps, Youtube, Facebook, etc. that I find interesting. Why does it feel like a good idea when I visit Ikea to have a meal or a coffee before I go to collect products downstairs? Behind all of this is the utilization of Big Data, i.e. mass data, collected from me and other people. The purpose of Big Data analytics is to process a large amount of different data. The purpose of the processing is to find different observations in the data mass, such as hidden patterns. With the help of today’s technology, it is possible to analyze the results of analytics quickly and efficiently, so that the answers are obtained almost immediately. [1] Based on the analysis, for example, Ikea is able to conclude how long a person spends time in the sofa section or what kind of products interest the bedroom decorator at the moment.
Essentially related to the same topic is IoT, i.e. Internet of Things, which means devices that are actively connected to the Internet. The number and diversity of such devices is growing at a dizzying pace all the time, and machines that you wouldn’t even imagine need the internet can already be connected to it. For example, I have a new Siemens dryer at home, which could be connected to a mobile phone. You could command the tumble dryer during the working day and you could give it different commands. Although device manufacturers offer their own applications for devices, the industry is growing its own IoT service offering. Elisa offers IoT connections and platforms for both home and business use, with which you can get more out of the data produced by the devices.
Risks of open digital society
The EU general data protection regulation (GDPR), which entered into force in 2018, initially had an impact on people’s conversations for a while, but the biggest pressure seemed to be on small companies. Now that the regulation has been in force for a few years, it seems that people have forgotten about the inquiries directed at companies and the inquiries have shifted in the direction of the authorities. At the moment, a lot of work is being done within the authorities on GDPR and at the same time people are accepting all kinds of contracts, e.g. when using different websites. It seems that people’s biggest concern is what the authorities have stored in the official registers. And at the same time, the home is filled with various Chinese electronics, which at worst sends images and sound from the living room to the other side of the globe.
Self evaluation
In the future, I plan to pay attention to the features of IoT devices and which devices contain network features. In the future, it may be difficult to acquire standard consumer electronics that are not IoT devices. Although it’s nice to read on your mobile phone when the toast is ready, it’s still reasonable to think about whether you need such a feature in a toaster. Using the additional features included in the products also increases the total power consumption of the device, which is not a very sustainable development in today’s situation. Even though some of the videos in the material were a bit older, it is surprising to notice how in 2014 they already knew how to lecture on issues that are very relevant today.
[1] SAS Institute Inc. 2022, Analytics Insights. Hakupäivä 12.2.2023 https://www.sas.com/fi_fi/insights/analytics/big-data-analytics.html