Dr. Bettina Horster is Leader of the Internet of Things Competence Group at eco – Association of the Internet Industry, and Board Member at VIVAI Software AG. She has been involved in the development of the Internet industry for many years. In interview, Dr. Bettina Horster explains, among other things, what kind of changes are taking place through IoT, and explores whether security and data protection can pose a barrier to new business models.
Dr. Horster, how will the Internet of Thing impact our lives?
After the age of the Internet, we are now entering the age of the sensor technology. The sensor systems are still in their infancy, but soon such technology will make our lives easier and support people in all aspects of their lives. The challenge is to understand the fact that we will have autonomous systems where we don’t have to press any buttons.
In terms of neural networks, we still don’t know how these networks will arrive at decisions. This is similar to a black box, and will also signify a certain loss of control. The relationship between man and machine must be completely re-assessed, and ethical considerations such as whether a self-driving car should drive into a group of pensioners or children in an emergency are just the beginning.
To what extent do you see security and data protection as obstacles to IoT business models?
Security and data protection are very important topic areas, mainly because they address the issue of sensitive personal data – the level of protection cannot be high enough. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) now forces people to look at this issue intensively.
People need to be more concerned about what they do with their personal data. The state is not able to take care of everything. On the other hand, in the business sector, some regulations are too strict.
Software solutions protecting personal data could become a bestseller in Germany – “Made in Germany” as a seal of quality for software with a convincing transparent security concept.
For IoT business models, I can only recommend integrating a data usage control, which means that providers should negotiate with users concerning precisely who is allowed to use personal data and under which circumstances. If the provider benefits from the data transfer, the user should get his or her fair share. Participation should create an incentive for data sharing, which can also lead to greater user acceptance.
However, if the user decides that his or her personal data should not be processed by the system under any circumstances, it is actually not advisable for the user to use it. Networking is indispensable for IoT. However, the desire for more privacy must be respected. Now, the problem is that many IoT providers don’t have a personal point of contact to clarify data usage concepts. For this reason, they must create user interfaces that make such interactions possible.
What can the participants of the “IoT Business Trends” expect this year?
You will have the opportunity to listen to real-life use cases from areas that haven’t generally been regularly in the spotlight. We will show you how broad the field of IoT really is: from facility management to mobility to smart city. Our speakers do not present glossy brochures, but instead describe concrete projects that have worked and failed. In addition, the participants can expect an interesting keynote speech from Christian Solmecke, attorney at WILDE BEUGER SOLMECKE, who will talk about important aspects that need to be considered from a legal point of view.
In your review and outlook you talk about tops, flops, and lame ducks. Can you give us an example?
In my opinion, it is an absolute flop that I have to provide my social media data before I enter the United States. This shows that using Twitter, Facebook & Co. is no longer fun anymore because it can have unpleasant consequences.
On July 5, 2018, the IoT Business Trends 2018 will take place at the Wirtschaftsclub Dusseldorf.
