What is the Internet of Things, and how many devices are connected?
Your fridge, thermostat, and doorbell are all on the internet now.
The answer
The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the billions of physical devices - from smart thermostats and wearable fitness trackers to industrial sensors and connected vehicles - that collect and exchange data via the internet. By 2025, an estimated 75 billion IoT devices are connected worldwide. Smart cities use IoT for traffic management and pollution monitoring; precision agriculture uses soil sensors to optimize irrigation; and industrial IoT predicts equipment failures before they happen. The primary concern is security: many IoT devices have minimal protection, creating potential entry points for hackers.
Source: McKinsey & Company
- IoT
- smart devices
- connectivity
- security
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