In the first section of the course, we're going to discuss the Internet of Things, and how technology is becoming more and more important in our daily lives. We'll then think about the security of the devices we're using, and whether they're sufficiently protected. Also in this section, we'll cover an overview of common types of cyber attacks and how they're carried out. The objectives for the first section of the course are to be able to describe the Internet of Things, and common devices that connect to it, explore the devices commonly used in a home network, describe the security issues around the IoT and ways in which it can put you or your network at risk, and to understand the stages of a cyber attack. In our first module, we're going to look at what we mean by the Internet of Things. We'll describe the Internet of Things and common devices, and we'll explore some of the devices commonly used in a home network.

The internet is a global network made up of lots of smaller networks connected together. We use the internet in our everyday lives to communicate and to share information. But the way we use the internet, and the types of devices connected to it has changed compared to when it was invented. For many years, there have been more devices connected to the internet than humans on the planet. The number of connected devices is growing every day. The popularity of smart devices has had a significant impact on the growth of the internet, and this is where the Internet of Things comes in. We use the term Internet of Things to describe how the internet is used by lots of different devices, not just traditional computers. Many of these devices use sensors to collect information, which is then sent over the internet.

So, what do we mean by Things? Well, it could be anything we'd like to get information about, or maybe to control. For example, if you think about a room in our homes, we might want to know what the temperature is, whether there's any movement, or we might want to turn on a light. To do this, we could have sensors which either send information over the internet themselves or connect via a hub. We could get access to this information on a smartphone while we're in the room, but we could also get access when we're away from home.

Although the term IoT is still quite new, the concept is certainly not. It's estimated that the number of devices connected to the internet overtook the number of people on the planet around 2008. However, look at this quote from Nikola Tesla. Tesla is known as the person who pioneered the use of alternating current electricity, but did he also predict how we would be using the Internet of Things, and particularly, a smartphone? In the 1960s, ECHO 4, the first smart home device was invented, and in 1998, the first internet connected fridge was invented. Then in 2000, Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft, built his home Xanadu 2, which is full of internet connected tech, including a sensor system that's used to monitor the room's climate and lighting, which can be set remotely. The guests can change the temperature and lighting of the rooms to their own preferences, the music flows from speakers placed behind the wallpapers, and there are digital screens built into the walls to display artwork and other content.

You probably have a number of smart IoT devices in your home, such as smart speakers and fitness trackers. Here are some examples of some other types of devices we'd think of as IoT devices. Smart glasses which can superimpose information over real life views of things, smart heating controls which allow remote monitoring and control of home climates, in car telemetry devices which monitor and report and position, speed, and the motion of the car, and a smart fridge, which can allow people to monitor its contents, display recipes on a screen, and even automatically reorder certain items when they get low. As the number and variety of devices continues to grow, is there something that exists now, or may exist in the future, that you would like to own?

Although we don't think of our smart devices as computers, in most cases, that's what they are. IoT devices are just mini computers, like the desktop, laptop and tablet computers we use that contain computer hardware and run programs. However, we'd consider an IoT device to be a type of embedded system. Embedded systems are usually computers that are dedicated to a single, or a small number of tasks. This often means that they can be made with smaller, low-cost hardware components, and run software programs at a fixed functionality. If you own something like a smart watch, you might not think about the fact that you've got a tiny computer on your wrist. If you think about how powerful these computers are, they would be comparable to something that was 10 times the size only a few years ago. As computers get smaller, cheaper, and more powerful, the range of uses also increases. Like our traditional computers, the software on IoT devices can usually be updated, and of course, these devices can communicate over networks like the internet.

IoT covers all sorts of devices, here are some examples of how we use IoT and smart devices. Internet connected security devices have become very popular in recent years, including doorbells which contain a camera, a speaker, and a microphone. IoT security allows us to monitor our homes from our smartphones wherever we are, and receive notifications when people call, or if movement is detected. IoT devices offer a number of new opportunities for healthcare professionals to monitor patients, as well as for patients to monitor themselves. For example, people who live with diabetes can wear a sensor, which provides live and historical information on glucose levels. This means that they can better manage their diabetes daily, understand the impact of their actions on their glucose levels, and live healthier lives. Healthcare professionals can collect this information and use it to help with research and remedies.

As we get more smart devices in our homes, this gives us an opportunity to do different types of remote control. For example, we can turn on lights and lock doors when we're away, turn the heating up and down, close blinds, and set burglar alarms. And, of course, entertainment systems and toys are often now connected to the internet to increase their functionality. We can watch movies, play interactive games, listen to music and buy goods while we're at home and on the move with our smart devices. And some toys now connect to the internet to make them more interactive and to allow them to send information such as video and sound.

Many of the IoT devices available are designed to be used in our homes, and this is turning our homes into smart homes. When devices share information with each other, this allows our homes to become more automated. So, instead of a person needing to recognise that the temperature of the room is too cold and turn the heating up, our IoT devices can make decisions and do this, these things for us. If a camera detects movement outside the house, a smart lightbulb could be turned on automatically to deter intruders. Our devices might be programmed to automate activities when we're away on holiday, or even depending on what time of year it is. As an example, if we're wearing a smart watch or carrying a phone, sensors in the home might know if we're in or if we're out. If we leave home, a smartphone could use GPS to identify our location, which in turn could be used to make decisions about the settings for the various types of devices.

If you have smart devices, and you're interested in making them work together, the ‘If This Then That’ website makes it easy to do something with your things. It provides access to preprogrammed routines and automation activities that work with many popular IoT devices. Why not have a look and give it a try?

IoT is not just in our homes, it's also used in most industries these days. Manufacturing is one area of industry where IoT has become commonplace, helping improve products, while reducing manufacturing times and costs by streamlining processes and providing access to real time data. Take the example of Harley Davidson, who introduced IoT into their production facilities, which reduced the time to manufacture a motorbike from 21 days to just six hours. IoT can also create a better environment for workers, improving their working day, and making the workplace safer to work in. Critical national infrastructure includes things that are essential for the functioning of society, such as electricity and water supplies, transportation, health services, and telecommunications.

IoT now plays a big part in the operation of these systems, by embedding sensors, things like energy supplies, traffic flow and water quality can now be monitored in real time. This information intelligence can be used with computers to allow faster and more informed decision making that can save lives, protect investments and prevent downtime. Many of the technologies used in our critical national infrastructure are also being used to develop smart cities. We've already seen how our homes are becoming smarter but think about how technology is being used outside of homes, in other buildings such as shops, in cars, buses and trains, and in electricity generation. A smart city is an urban area which uses technology to create a more efficient, environmentally friendly, and a more pleasant place for people to live and work. IoT, along with increased automation and artificial intelligence will play a big part in the future and the evolution of smart cities.

So, devices can now share information with each other and make decisions without any human intervention. Cognitive computing is a type of artificial intelligence that simulates the way we think as humans. In cognitive computing, machines can learn, understand and make decisions in a way that's similar to how humans do, and can do these things at high speed. This means that large amounts of data can be analysed and decisions made faster than humans, and often means patterns in information can be detected that would be difficult or impossible to be detected by humans. Quite often, we now see computers making decisions and controlling other machines without any human intervention. So, what does this mean for the future of our smart homes, and how intelligent can our smart technology get?

This brings us onto our first lab exercise. Most people will use technology and devices without fully understanding how they work and what their capabilities are. How many times have you received a new device and just switched it on and started using it without reading any instructions? To get the most out of our devices, we should fully understand what the capabilities and limitations are. In this lab, you'll explore some of the settings on your lab machine. This will help you to become familiar with the machine for the rest of the course and understand how it's configured.

Module 1: Internet of Things

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