ITC595 Research Project: Security & Privacy in IoT Architecture

This research project, submitted as part of ITC595, investigates the critical security and privacy issues inherent in the Internet of Things (IoT) and smart architectures. The project begins with an abstract highlighting the benefits of IoT and the corresponding vulnerabilities stemming from real-time data collection and sharing. The introduction establishes the core technologies of IoT, including sensors, connectivity, data processing, and user interfaces, and identifies the research problem: the vulnerability of data transmitted through communication channels. The research justifies the need for addressing these concerns, emphasizing the potential catastrophic consequences of security breaches and privacy violations. A literature review explores relevant technologies such as RFID and WSN, and examines challenges like security, privacy, adoption, and standardization. The paper concludes by acknowledging the ongoing efforts to address these concerns but highlights the need for more effective solutions.

ITC595 Research Project (Security & Privacy Issue in
Internet of Things/ Smart Architecture)
Name of the Student
Name and department of University
Email of the author
ABSTRACT – Internet of things (IoT) is one of the most
revolutionary innovation of this century. It has proved itself to be
significantly beneficial in different industries. In simpler terms, it is
the concept of integrating different technologies to attain the
objective of sharing data among themselves and the user. The
whole network of the considered network is controlled through
smart means, that is using smart devices such as smart phones,
smart watches and other smart devices. The discussed technology
operates by collecting real-time data and taking the necessary
actions accordingly which is the most prominent advantage of the
considered system. However, the most prominent advantage of the
IoT is its weakest link as well because, the collection of real-time
data and sharing it over the internet makes it vulnerable to cyber-
threats. The justification for the selection of the topic has also been
discussed in the review which is because the concerns associating
with the IoT needs to be mitigated to leverage the technology and
earn mass adoption of the technique and in the process earn
technical advancement. The most prominent challenge that the user
face due to IoT is the challenge of security & Privacy which are
raising significant concerns over the technology. The devised paper
has attempted at evaluating the security & privacy concerns
associated with the IoT. The paper has discussed the literary work
of past to earn an insight into the subject which would assist the
readers in mitigating the challenge.
Keywords— IoT, security & privacy, smart devices, sensors, data
processing, internet
INTRODUCTION
Xu, Da Xu, Cai, Xie, Hu & Bu, (2014), has stated that IoT is
the technology that will completely alter the lifestyle of the
users from traditional approach to a simpler and advanced
lifestyle. The core functionality off the subject is based on the
internet and real-time data which enables the users to control
equipment or appliances that are connected within the IoT
from even geographical distant locations. The network also
shares information among the devices to make them smart to
automate the basic operations. The IoT are proving to be
significant in almost all sectors from industries, education,
healthcare, homes or any other depending on the type of
design. However, the technology is posing prominent
challenges to the users and the most significant of them is the
security & privacy concerns. However, to understand the
security & privacy threats offered by the considered
technology, it is of great significance to understand the
technology which has been done in the following paragraph.
The technology can only be understood if its insight is
earned and to do so, it is necessary to understand the
technologies to integrate together to form the IoT system. The
core technologies involved are sensors & devices, connectivity,
(DP)data processing and UI (user interface). They have been
discussed as follows:
Sensors & devices: The purpose of the sensors in IoT is to
collect real-time data and send it to the servers. It can be as
simple as measuring the temperature to measuring humidity
and other complex data.
Connectivity: It includes the communication channel
through which the sensors sends the data or the user inputs the
response, it can be internet, infrared (for short range) Bluetooth
connected IoT or cloud.
Data processing: The data collected from the sensors and
moved are moved here to process them and take the necessary
action. The processing is done by means of some software.
User Interface: Post-processing of the data a notification is
sent to the user depending upon which they can send the input
to the server and change the status of the equipment in
consideration according to the need.
The discussion of the factors involved in the process have
made the working of the IoT clear. In concise form, the
working of the IoT can be stated as “Sensors collect the data
which using the communication channel is sent to the server
where it is processed and a notification is sent to the user who
in response changes the status of the equipment in
consideration.”.
A. Research Problem
After analyzing the working of the IoT, it is determined that
the biggest challenge posed by the subject is due to the
communication channel. The data that the sensors transmit
through the communication channel are not encrypted and
hence are vulnerable to cyber-attacks. These cyber-attacks are
threat to both the security and privacy of the user and the
associated systems. In case, if one of the IoT connected
equipment is overheating and the signal sent by the sensor are
manipulated or blocked by the cyber-malefactors, it may result
in some major catastrophic situation. The equipment may
overheat and explode posing a significant threat to everything
and everyone around it. Other such scenarios can also be cited
by the security threat of the IoT and they are not just limited to
the physical damage, the damage to the user’s data could also
be taken in account. The above-mentioned statement has been
quoted because the IoT network has all the gadgets and devices
used by the users connected to it. In case, any trespassers enter
the server of the users than they can see, manipulate or destroy
the personal data of the users posing a significant threat to the
user’s privacy. So, security & privacy is a major concern for
the IoT which needs to be addressed as quickly as possible to
leverage the full potentiality of the subject and hence is the
research problem of the discussed paper.
B. Research Justification
The example cited in the research problem is just a minor
example of the significant threat posed by the IoT. The
government organizations are also adopting the IoT and if any
unwanted sources get through it the results can be
catastrophic. Additionally, the discussed technology was
devised to assist the users to earn an easy, comfortable and
simplified use of the system but if it cannot offer security &

privacy which will cite different difficulties to users then the
purpose for devising the subject is a failure. Hence, it can be
stated that to cite witness to its usefulness, IoT must offer
security & privacy to its users. Additionally, the research
problem of the paper is a subject which has been raised many
times and many potential solutions have been identified
however, no appropriate solution has been identified. Hence,
it is mandatory to identify, the remedy for the discussed
challenge making the research work justified.
LITEERATURE REVIEW
The research justification quoted that multiple research
work has been assessed on the discussed topic and the
considered section have reviewed some of the literary work
and summarized the finding in the deemed section. The
findings have been categorized and are discussed as follows:
Relevant Technologies: Multiple technologies integrate
together to formulate the IoT network. The core technologies in
a general sense have been discussed in the overview, however,
proper attention to the technologies that defines and drives the
network have not been covered and they have been reviewed in
the discussed section. The technologies identified from
reviewing the literary work of past and present that defines and
drives the IoT as discussed as follows:
RFID: RFID abbreviation for Radio Frequency
Identification System, is an automated technique that enables
the system to identify, record (metadata) and control specific
equipment by using radio signals. The discussed technology is
responsible for identifying and changing the status of a specific
system that has been tagged in the IoT system and is attached
to the network.
WSN: WSN abbreviated for wireless sensor network plays
the role of sensing the remote signals for the discussed
network. It is a low-powered miniature device that has
enhances the sensing capability of the sensors providing
accuracy to the network. The core advantage that is offered by
adopting the WSN in the IoT network enhancement of the data
collection processes, data analysing, and disseminating of the
data that had been collected through different aspects of the
surrounding. The discussed technology has its own components
that assists the WSN to achieve its objective. The first of them
is the hardware that is made up of transmitters, receivers,
sensors, processing unit and the power supply to keep its
operating. The processing unit is equipped to convert the
analogous signal to the digital signal. Jia, Feng, Fan & Lei,
(2012), has also discussed about the communication stack
which maintains the longevity and scalability by designing
adequate MAC layer, topology plans and routing of the system.
WSN, as stated above ensures that the collected data are
appropriate and for the deemed objective it adopts the data
aggregation method which enables the self-healing of the nodes
and links the actuator to the system ensuring its safety.
Other technologies are also associated with the objective
achievement of the IoT. The technologies like communication
channel, sensors, data storage and analytic which have been
discussed in the overview of the IoT.
Challenges associated with IoT: The objective of the paper
is to evaluate the security & privacy challenge offered by the
IoT. However, the above discussed challenges are not the only
challenge offered by the smart architecture, other significant
challenges are also associated with it and on reviewing the
literary work some of them had been identified and they are
listed as follows:
Security & Privacy: It has been stated above that the
discussed challenge is most prominent in the IoT. The smart
architecture has a large of number of devices connected within
it and they are homogeneous in nature which makes they even
more vulnerable to attacks from cyber-malefactors. The reason
for stating that homogeneity and large number of connected
device makes it vulnerable to threats lays basis over the fact
that if the cyber criminals enter even in a single system then
they can gain access of the all the systems due to its
homogeneous nature. Privacy is also a prominent threat for the
users connected to the IoT and it is caused to the integration of
the data with system’s environment. The impact of the
discussed threat has been discussed in the sections above.
Adoption: IoT is one of the most disruptive technology and
needs an infrastructure that can leverage it. Most of the
countries around the globe are not ready to adopt the
technology due to the demand of highly structured
infrastructure by the subject. The developing or under-
developed countries lack high-connectivity or even the tools
that would maintain the sustainability of the technology. In
case, the technology is adopted with improper structure, the
threats of security & privacy will be comparatively higher and
can result in some severe results.
Standards: The challenges discussed above are related to
security & privacy and adoption of the technology which made
it evident that the developing and under-developed countries
are not ready for the IoT and hence, they lack proper standard
for the same. The discussed challenge has its own importance
because the adoption of IoT without proper standards would
lead to misuse of the technology and other consequential
results. The reviews also revealed that it is not advisable for the
non-developed countries to adopt the standards from developed
countries because of the difference in their culture and
environment. Additionally, the legal obligations will also play a
significant challenge for the technology because flow of data
cross borders would pose a significant threat to the country and
its citizens. Hence, it can be stated that lack of standard also
has its prominence in challenging the IoT.
Gaps and future directions: It is evident from the literary
work that the security & privacy concerns of smart architecture
has been assessed by multiple scholars in the past and are
pursuing it in the present day as well. They have evaluated the
discussed network from different perspective and contacts to
omit the challenge and they have succeeded to an extent.
However, they have not determined appropriate solution for the
discussed situation which can be considered as a major gap.
The reason that the success is still out of grasp for the IoT
researchers is because the notorious means are developing
themselves with the technology. Hence, the most appropriate
step would be to integrate the IoT with self-learning artificial
intelligence (AI). The smart architecture is smart but are still
dependent on its developer for its upgradation and security. The
integration of the AI will assist the smart architecture to
develop themselves with time and will even ensure that they
are safe. The proposed direction for future work on the security
& privacy is feasible which is evident from the recent case of
Google’s AI. Google’s AutoMl created another AI NASNet
also known by the name ‘child’ bot that has outperformed all
the human-made AI’s (Sulleyman, 2017). Machine-learning
can also be implemented in the smart architecture to enhance
their capabilities and ensure that they maintain the security
themselves along with the user’s data and systems. Hence, it is
a direction where the researchers and scholars can proceed to
make the IoT secure. The scope is infinite; they will have the
opportunity to identify the challenges associated in the
proposed measure. Additionally, other things like the benefits,
the requirements and other necessary factors can also be
identified giving enormous opportunity.

Another gap that has been identified from reviewing the
literary work is the lack of researches on the physical security
for the local data centre based IoT network. Disaster or other
physical attacks like robbery and others can disrupt the
functioning of the network. It will have more prominent effect
on the organisations because loss of organisational data will
affect the sustainability of the organisation. Hence, it is an area
that have ample of scope for research work. They can discuss
the backup & recovery of data along with potential measures
that will enable the functionality of the IoT post attack also.
The physical security measures can also be discussed. Hence, it
can be stated that though significant amount of researches has
been conducted on the IoT/Smart Architecture still there is
large gap that needs to be fulfilled to leverage the technology at
its full capacity.
PROPOSED DESIGN
The design for data collection for the proposed research will
be the mixed data collection methodology which will take
account of both the primary and secondary data collection
method. The secondary data will be collected to earn an
insight into the subject and formulate the questionnaire that
will be distributed among the stakeholders of IoT. The
philosophy adopted by the proposed work will be positivism
which will consider both the scientific and abstract data while
the approach will exploratory in which the current scenario
will be evaluated to reach on a summarized finding. The
secondary data has will be sampled with critical thinking while
the primary quantitative data will be sampled with the
statistical tool MS Excel. If any other tool or technique is
adopted, it will be mentioned in the final paper.
CONCLUSION
The discussed report can be emphasized to state that IoT is
one of the most disruptive technologies of today. However,
the technology is offering significant challenges to the users
and the most prominent of them is the security & privacy
threat. The review of the scholarly article reveals that several
methods are present that are capable off mitigating the threat.
However, none of them can be called as adequate because the
cyber criminals are upgrading themselves with the changing
technology. Which is one of the identified gap in the literature.
Apart from the identified future scope that is research on
adequate solution for the security & privacy concern of the IoT
another gap was identified that is relevant to the gap in
literature regarding the physical security of the data centers of
non-cloud based IoT. The paper has also discussed the
research design for the proposed paper and will proceed
accordingly. The paper, can be concluded to state that IoT is
prominent in today’s industry however its security & privacy
concerns should be given more attention to ensure that the
outcome from the system is adequate.
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