The Weather Company will use IoT sensors to detect calamities

For the past years the Internet of Things has radically changed technology with millions of devices already connected. Following the popularity of numerous consumer-oriented products, the time has come for innovation in the internet of larger things.

The Weather Company will integrate IBM”s Watson IoT platform in its Personal Weather Station (PWS) Network to assess barometric pressure, temperature, humidity and more. Data from over 200,000 weather stations in 195 countries will be sent to local businesses and governments to predict future calamities in underdeveloped areas such as Kenya and Nigeria.

“We are committed to continuing to improve the accuracy of our forecast and working in concert with national meteorological services toward our goal of providing every person on the planet with the weather forecast information they need to be safe and prepared in the face of weather,” stated Mary Glackin, TWC”s head of science and forecast operation, and SVP for public-private partnerships.

Researchers inform that security concerns are growing in the IoT sector, technology which has often proven vulnerable to third-party attacks.

“On the Internet of Things, integrity and availability threats are much worse than confidentiality threats,” warned Bruce Schneier, a security technologist, author and the CTO of Resilient Systems.

There are several advantages to large scale IoT projects and smart communities. They could reduce noise and pollution levels, detect earthquakes and improve traffic, but the lack of fundamental security behind the infrastructure is exposing them to invisible attacks.

The global adoption of IoT and the lack of could lead to an increased number of attacks not only in the consumer channel, but also in enterprises, government institutions, medical facilities, schools, and ultimately on smart city infrastructures.