Internet of things, big data e privacy: la triade del futuro

This paper focuses on one of the most important contemporary research fields in the realm of information communication technologies, namely the Internet of Things (IoT). IoT is centred on making everyday objects “intelligent,” allowing them to interact with each other and their users and in so doing develop and expand network capacity. Thanks to rapid technological advances, common every-day objects employed in different sectors such as logistics, mobility, health etc. are proving to be at the forefront of the development of new applications aimed at improving quality of life and enhance the collection of reliable data about the environment in which these objects are used. The first chapter focuses on the definition and dissemination of IoT, providing a brief overview of the various components of “smart objects.” The second examines the existing and increasingly strong relationship between the world of intelligent objects and data, metadata and big data, as well as on data collection processes and specifically on data mining and business analytics, highlighting the pros and cons of these relationships. The third chapter discusses the possible impact of the IoT on individual user’s privacy, providing a definition of the concept of privacy while examining the evolution of the concept. Here an analysis of current marketed devises is provided, examining the problems associated with these in the realm of data privacy while illustrating how the concept of “privacy by design” could represent a partial solution to these challenges.