Security and Standards for the Internet of Things

For a research paper I have been working on for CS 573, I have been studying the Internet of Things, focusing specifically on its industrial applications and security. Two recent articles show why the "Industrial Internet," which is a term coined by GE used to describe the connection of industrial machines and infrastructure to the Internet, will be a big and important part of the future and that the security of it is crucial for its development.

The first article from Forbes was about GE's recent announcement that the revenue from their Predictivity solutions (basically their current Industrial Internet software and systems) will exceed $1 billion in 2014. GE has generally been the leader of what they believe to be the Industrial Internet Revolution (kind of like a Second Machine Age), connecting a wide variety of devices to the Internet such as jet engines and power generators. It appears that they are succeeding not only in connecting devices but also in making money and actually improving various industries as they have claimed they would. Improvements they have shown include increased output from wind turbines and large gains in fuel efficiency from their jet engines.

The second article was about the importance of security to the success of the Industrial Internet. Connecting computers to industrial control equipment introduces new dangers like vulnerabilities to cyber-attacks, and the connection of those devices to the Internet provides even more ways for the devices to be attacked and introduces the problem of network security. The articles described the recent discovery of a variant of the BlackEnergy malware, which targeted "popular human-machine interfaces (HMIs) of industrial control systems." The most famous example of a cyber-attack on the industrial world, however, is the Stuxnet worm, which was most likely developed by the United States and Israel as an attack against Iran's nuclear program. It reportedly destroyed 1/5 of Iran's nuclear centrifuges.

So, security of the Industrial Internet is a big issue, and it even becomes a national security issue when critical infrastructure is involved in cyber-attacks or cyber warfare. However, because there are huge benefits of the Industrial Internet in both the public and private sector, governments and corporations are taking the issue of security very seriously.

I have also thought about the similarities between the creation of the Industrial Internet and the creation of the Internet, specifically in regards to the creation of standards as described by Russell. In many ways, the development processes appear to be similar, although perhaps now private corporations are more involved and security is a bigger concern. Still, government funding and research, along with efforts by private companies and new collaborative organizations, seem to be the driving force of standards creation. For example, companies like GE, AT&T, and IBM formed the Industrial Internet Consortium just this year, which mirrors the formation of organizations like OSI during the development of the Internet.


Sources:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2014/11/12/ge-is-beginning-to-see-strong-returns-on-its-industrial-internet-investments/
http://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=36&doc_id=1324538