Smart City Trends and their Privacy Implications
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Written by: Chris Jones
In October 2017, Waterfront Toronto in partnership with Sidewalk Labs announced their joint venture to work on the 12-acre Quayside project that would combine new digital technology and modern urban design to produce people-oriented neighborhoods of sustainability, mobility, affordability, and economic growth. Quayside, which has halted due to financial constraints and the unprecedented economic uncertainty around the world, was to serve as a specimen for cities around the world.
Smart cities such as the Quayside project promise a lot of good things when it comes to solving problems that arise due to overpopulation in the world’s urban cities. Let’s look at some of the world’s smart city trends and the benefits they bring.
High Connectivity
Smart cities are highly connected through numerous free public wi-fi hotspots, CCTV cameras, etc. Strategically placed wi-fi hotspots provide reliable and affordable internet services to all city dwellers, thus increasing digital equity. With CCTV cameras, it’s easier to catch thieves, and this makes the cities safer.
Smart Transportation
Traffic congestion is the nightmare of many city dwellers, but technology comes with some promising solutions. For instance, with smart cities, public transport routes can easily be modified as per the demand, and smart traffic lights used to reduce congestion.
Smart Homes
High energy consumption is among the challenges brought about by a growing urban population. Through smart buildings, smart cities can lower their carbon footprint as these buildings use renewable energy sources and quality sensors to reduce afflictive effects on the environment. Smart cities also use different technologies including smart energy meters and LED technology to help monitor real-time energy consumption and reduce energy use respectively.
IoT Development
One of the biggest developments in smart cities is the use of IoT devices to leverage different sectors of city life. For instance, there will be IoT apps that reduce air pollution through up-to-date tracking of the air quality.
AI and ML Technologies for Smart Garbage Management and Recycling
Proper waste collection, management, and disposal is vital in any big city. AI and ML smart technologies can help in recycling and garbage management by offering a viable garbage management system. For instance, five masters students from the University of Toronto thought it is wise to create a RoboBin that uses photos to sort out different wastes. The system uses AI technology to scan the waste before mechanically dropping it into the right bin.
Smart Cities Privacy Concerns
For smart city technologies to be effective at what they are supposed to do, data collection and analysis is a must. And, with more interconnected devices, more user information is available to governments and organizations. This is not an issue in itself. A possible risk arises when this data is sold to third parties or used for commercial purposes.
Citizens have legitimate concerns when it comes to the implementation of smart cities; and, in the case of the Quayside project, the risk was even greater given that the venture was to be undertaken by Sidewalk Labs, a Google-owned company. Now, we all know that Google has a bad reputation when it comes to misusing consumer data. It is no wonder this project had been under high scrutiny even before it was cancelled.
The Future of Smart Cities
While smart cities come with several advantages, there is still the greater risk of privacy concerns for the city residents. In today’s world where personal data is becoming more and more valuable, the data collected by the government and private entities commissioned to execute smart city projects could fall into the wrong hands.
Even if companies such as Sidewalk Labs were to honor their user privacy agreements, and use the collected data in a more responsible way, there is still the risk of breach in cyberattacks. Huge amounts of user data are particularly attractive to hackers.
Usually, data collected by city authorities has all the information that the hacker requires to steal user identity or execute a crime. To make matters worse, a smart city, because of its enormous size, has a large number of possible entry points that cybercriminals could use to interfere with the working of internet-enabled services such as public transport management, sewage, water, energy, traffic lights, snow removal, and emergency service deployment.
How to Stay Protected
A smart city breach can have far-reaching effects on the citizen. That is why cybersecurity technology, standards, and operations have to be included in the portfolio from the inception of the project. In particular, endpoint security should be taken seriously, considering the extent to which these cities depend on connected devices like lights, sensors, and cameras. This is because one compromised device could become a doorway to a whole network.
Other than taking the necessary precautions during project implementation, government entities and corporations need to be transparent about all the details that may affect residents including the amount of data collected and the intended lifecycle and usage.
When it comes to individual responsibility, there are certain steps citizens can take to ensure their privacy is upheld. One of the smartest ways to do this is using a VPN to stay anonymous online especially when connecting to free public wi-fi’s. A VPN will help you maintain a secure internet connection as well as preserve internet privacy by hiding your IP address and encrypting your internet traffic. This way, you will be able to secure your online traffic from the government and other third parties.
As per the UN predictions, 68 per cent of the entire world’s population will be living in urban centers by 2050. This means our urban centers are both environmentally, economically, and socially strained. Smart cities can help us overcome some of these issues and make urban areas better places to live. But, they come with some major privacy concerns. The good news is that both the government, project creators, and citizens can work towards not only realizing a smart city, but a privacy-oriented city as well. We are able to enjoy all the benefits that come with a smart city, while still upholding our privacy, as long as everyone involved plays their part as discussed above.
Chris is the resident tech expert and managing director of #TurnOnVPN. #TurnOnVPN is an activist group whose mission is to promote free and unimpeded internet for all. We take part in numerous online events to advocate for a safe, secure, and censor-free Internet. Learn more at www.turnonvpn.org/blog/.
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