1. Monthly archive
  2. August 2016

August 2016

Increasing the Potential of IoT through Security and Transparency

To help realize the full innovative potential of the Internet of Things, users need reasonable assurance that IoT devices and applications will be secure. One particular area of concern is whether and how to address potential security vulnerabilities in IoT devices or applications through patching and security upgrades. In the early IoT market, there has sometimes been limited consideration for supporting future security patches, even though many devices will eventually need them. Enabling a thriving market for devices that support security upgrades requires common definitions so consumers know what they are getting.

A range of commenters on the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s recent IoT Request for Comment and 2015’s Request for Comment related to cybersecurity identified security upgradability as an issue that required attention and coordination. In response, NTIA is planning to launch a new multistakeholder process to support better consumer understanding of IoT products that support security upgrades. We have utilized this approach to help make progress on issues such as cybersecurity vulnerability disclosure and providing more transparency about data collected by mobile apps. Given the burgeoning consumer adoption of IoT, the time seems ripe to bring stakeholders together to help drive some guidelines to encourage the growth of IoT. The goal of the new multistakeholder process will be to promote transparency in how patches or upgrades to IoT devices and applications are deployed. Potential outcomes could include a set of common, shared terms or definitions that could be used to standardize descriptions of security upgradability or a set of tools to better communicate security upgradability. As with our other multistakeholder processes, it will be up to stakeholders to determine what outcome they want and when they have reached consensus on it. NTIA will act as a neutral convener. We welcome broad participation and diverse perspectives.

Cities, States Battle Over Municipal Broadband

According to the Federal Communications Commission, 10 percent of Americans don't have access to fixed high-speed networks for Internet service, mostly delivered via cable, fiber-optic or digital subscriber telephone lines. That number jumps to 39 percent of Americans in rural areas. Local governments, supported by the FCC, say they should be able to build out broadband networks, especially in rural areas where commercial service is slow or non-existent. About 490 cities offer some sort of public broadband, according to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, a non-profit advocacy group that promotes community development. Internet service providers have fought against local government efforts. Nineteen states, including Tennessee, have laws on the books limiting municipal broadband networks, according to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.

The question before the Sixth Circuit: How much authority do Tennessee and North Carolina have to restrict local broadband networks, and does the FCC have the power to overrule them? “There’s considerable legal precedent around the ability of states to have unfettered authority on laws impacting municipalities,” said Michael Santorelli, a director of the Advanced Communications Law and Policy Institute at New York Law School.

"Mapping Broadband Health in America" Provides Data-Driven Tool for Developing Broadband Health Policies and Solutions

The Federal Communications Commission’s Connect2Health Task Force launched the Mapping Broadband Health in America tool, a web-based mapping tool that will enable and inform more efficient, data-driven decision making at the intersection of broadband and health. By allowing users to ask and answer questions about broadband and health at the county and census block levels, the tool provides critical data that can help drive broadband health policies and connected health solutions for this critical space.

The mapping tool is an interactive experience, showing various aspects of connectivity and health for every state and county in the United States. Users can generate customized maps that display broadband access, adoption and speed data alongside various health measures (e.g., obesity, diabetes, disabilities and physician access) in urban and rural areas. These maps can be used by both public and private sectors and local communities to identify not only gaps, but also opportunities. Examples of some of the initial findings:

  • The picture of health is vastly different in connected communities vs. digitally isolated communities.
  • There is a significant gap between rural and urban counties.

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