I have worked in the Information Technology field for over 16 years and it still amazes me of new acronyms, technical terminology, and sayings that I am unaware of. Recently I was interviewing a candidate for a position within my organization and I asked him what technology he felt passionate about. Most of the time the candidate will say networking or creating scripts to achieve some type of application automation. This candidate spoke of how he enjoys IoT. IoT? What is IoT? Once the conversation concluded, I knew I had to Google it.

IoT is short for Internet of Things. IoT is the interconnection of uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices within the internet structure. IoT is not limited to PC-to-PC communications anymore, but any type of devices that utilizes an IP address, communication protocol, and some type of user authentication. What once was a personal computer, networking equipment, and the internet has now lead us to household appliances, medical equipment, health care management, manufacturing, and yes, even vending machines. For the most part, these types of technical breakthroughs are advancing humankind.

With its amazement, I do have concerns with this type of evolution. I see the internet backbone as a man-made virtual highway, with the introduction of these additional devices, may completely congest and overcrowd this virtual landscape. I see IOT as the Wild West, the uncharted waters to introduce new devices with unique protocols, with new security concerns, and privacy exploitation I actively observe in my daily interactions with people, in how even the smallest technical market, such as cell phones, is debilitating human interactions and connections.

I am thankful that I was able to come across a candidate that broaden my horizons. He allowed me to take a moment in my life to think about the future and the advantages and disadvantages of its advancement.  As the wired world turns, so does it terminology and not all things seem as they are made to appear.