Mitigating Cyber Attacks With IoT Security

Businesses produce large amounts of data that require the utmost safety from hackers. It is essential to adopt disruptive technologies like the Internet of Things to ensure the organization’s data is 100% secure. IoT is used for home and office automation and now it is used for mitigating cyber risks. 

IoT security safeguards connected devices and networks in the IoT. IoT security came to existence when high profile security theft incidents were noticed to attack the larger network. We often receive requests for Smart IoT solutions that enable businesses to accelerate their tasks within the organization and keep the data safe. 

Some IoT Security Challenges

There are various challenges when it comes to securing IoT devices. 

• One of the major issues that come along with IoT security is using default passwords that cause security breaches. Even the change of passwords is sometimes insufficient to prevent infiltration. 
   
• The next issue that occurs with IoT devices security thefts is resource-constraints. The available computing resources are insufficient to implement strong security. Various available devices do not offer advanced security features. For instance, the IoT enabled sensors used for monitoring temperature and humidity are ineffective in handling advanced levels of encryption or advanced security measures. 
   
• The next security challenge is connecting legacy assets that are not designed for IoT connectivity. It is expensive to replace these assets with connected technology to retrofit them with smart sensors for improved functionality. The retrofitted legacy infrastructure when not updated on time gets prone to modern threats. 

 

Read More: Overcoming Smart Home Automation Challenges

 

Industries Vulnerable to IoT Security Threats

Thefts related to IoT security can happen in any industry including smart homes, manufacturing plants, connected cars, etc. The severity of IoT security differs for each industry or the crucial data it contains. 

Hacking of IoT enabled cars can cause serious injuries to the owner. The brakes of the connected car can be disabled to cause an accident. A pharmacy company uses an IoT device to control the temperature of refrigeration system housing medicines. If the refrigeration system is hacked it can cause serious vulnerabilities.  

Also, an attack against a smart lock can affect the security of people living inside a smart home. 

 

Protect IoT Systems and Devices

IoT security methods differ from specific IoT applications within the IoT ecosystem. IoT device manufacturers must consider IoT security as the topmost priority and concentrate on building security from the start. It is essential to make the device tamper-proof, develop secure hardware, and ensure secure upgrades. 

Mitigating IoT Device Attacks with IoT Security Measures:

• Incorporating security at the design phase. IoT developers must include security at the starting of enterprise industrial-based device development. It is essential to enable security by default and provide devices with recent operating systems through secure hardware. 
   
• Credentials Security: Designing should not happen with hardcoded credentials. The developers need to update their credentials before the device functions. Handover the device with default credentials that can be later updated by the users through a strong password or biometrics.
   
• PKI and digital certificates. For the development of secure IoT devices, Public key infrastructure (PKI) and 509 digital certificates play an important role. These certificates provide trust and control needed for distributing and identifying public encryption keys, enabling the security of data exchanges over networks and verify identity.
   
• API security. Security of Application performance indicator (API) is critical to secure the coherence of data sent by IoT devices to the back-end systems.
   
• Network security. Network security involves port security by deactivating never opening ports when not in use. It is essential to use anti-malware including firewalls, and intrusion detection systems like blocking unauthorized IP addresses, etc. 
   
• Consumer Education. Consumer education is one of the factors that can prevent the dangers of IoT systems. It is essential to inform the customers about updating their default credentials and software with IoT systems to prevent cyber hefts whenever needed. 

Are you planning to integrate your business with the Smart IoT solutions? We are an IoT app development company that enables businesses to deliver smart IoT solutions for controlling various operations at their organization. Get in touch with our IoT experts for complete details! 

 

Understanding The Benefits Of Industrial Internet Of Things

The advent of the Internet of things (IoT) is changing the way businesses work. Its impact is visible in asset tracking, product manufacturing, designing, and healthcare, etc. Various businesses use IoT technology for office automation, data analysis, etc. Integrating IoT enabled devices to your businesses can help you stay ahead of the curve. We as an IoT application development company receive requests for integrating smart IoT solutions for warehouse management. 

According to a Forbes survey, healthcare, manufacturing, and financial services are the leaders in using IoT technology. Businesses are connecting IoT capabilities with other powerful technologies like Artificial Intelligence and Big data analytics to maximize business benefits. 58% of survey correspondents in the financial services sector were reported developing IoT initiatives followed by healthcare organizations with 55%. The proliferation of IoT systems is visible in the manufacturing and financial services sector with 47% and 42% respectively. 

According to the MarketsAndMarkets IoT market is projected to reach over $560 billion by 2022. Our IoT app development experts have collaborated with various real-estate builders to turn a simple home to a smart home. 

How is IoT Deriving Industries?  

Financial Services: Various financial services organizations are using IoT technology to ensure security. These businesses use visual sensors and networks of cameras to ensure the viability of their facilities. 

• In banking billions of systems are connected. The intelligent systems and devices share data on the cloud to analyze, collect data, and transform the banking sector or businesses. 
• One of the core benefits of IoT in banking is that it offers reward points, enables easy access to all banking services to credit and debit cardholders, etc. The use of IoT in the banking sector is used to analyze the use of ATM kiosks in specific areas.  
• IoT data is used by banks to provide more flexibility and on-demand services available to the customers. 

IoT in Healthcare: Healthcare is one such area that is influenced by IoT technologies. IoT experiences can be achieved inside emergency rooms, waiting rooms, and business offices. The healthcare sector is using IoT technologies to monitor the health of patients. Various devices are used to detect patient conditions using IoT enabled wearables. 

• Motion sensors are used inside the hospital washrooms to prevent wastage of electricity 
• Wearables are attached to the clothes of Alzheimer patients to prevent them from hazards. 
• Patients at risk of heart attacks are given wearables that are attached to their bodies to monitor their condition at regular intervals. 

Industrial Manufacturing: IoT technology is used by industries to reduce wastage and increase productivity. It is also used to manage entire supply chain processes including asset tracking, waste minimization, stock management, worker and asset safety, etc. You can also explore the capabilities of IoT in the manufacturing industry here: Exploring IoT capabilities in Manufacturing Industry.  

Some Use Cases of Industrial IoT (IIOT) Applications 

1. Airbus: Factory of the Future

Assembling a commercial jetliner is not only difficult but it requires a deep understanding of the compilation of millions of components and thousands of assembly steps. To tackle compilation complexities, Airbus started Factory of the Future to increase productivity and streamline various operations. It has integrated the IoT sensor to machines and tools and provided workers with wearables like smart glasses to reduce the chances of errors and increase workplace safety. 

2. Amazon: Reinventing Warehousing

According to Amazon’s Sr. Vice President Dave Clark, the company saved 20% on the operating cost in the year 2014 by simply using IoT enabled smart Robots to locate shelves of the products. Amazon acquired Kiva Technology for $775 billion in 2012 and since then it plans to use it as drones or to hunt for objects within the warehouse. The technology has been very successful so far and is sure that using it can achieve more benefits. 

Are you planning to automate your industrial processes? We are an IoT application development company that delivers smart IoT solutions to businesses across the globe. Get in touch with our experts to know more about the benefits of integrating IoT solutions to your business! 

Importance of Data Analysis In Python

Python has become an increasingly popular tool for analyzing data. There are several libraries for data analysis that go of well with Python web development services. Because of its easily readable codes and lesser time investment in coding, Python development services are in huge demand for data analysis. Earlier people used to perform different segments of data analysis on different platforms like doing econometrics on Stata, GIS work on ArcGIS and network analysis in R, people then wanted to unify their workflow. And then with the advent of Python for data analysis, every segment of data analysis could be performed in a single environment. With excellent real-time executions, Python has become an analyst's best choice for data-related operations.

Few important things which every analyst must know for working in Python are :

• Data Types
• Defining Functions
• Understanding mutable and immutable data types.
• Writing Loops
• Manipulating strings
• Importing third-party modules
• Reading and interpreting errors

Also Read: Top 5 Python App Development Frameworks In 2020

Since Python has a simple text-based interface it makes it more user-friendly and interactive. Python app development depends on the two most important libraries, i.e., Pandas and Numpy for adding different data types. Also, Python is a versatile environment that has similar functions performed on R that makes the tasks of R users easier when they switch from R to Python.

Important Libraries used in Python :

• Pandas
• Numpy
• Matplotlib
• Scikit Learn
• StatsModel

Every library has its own importance when it comes to working with data or analyzing datasets. Since Pandas is the most important library in Python for data analysis it involves understanding two main algorithms i.e., data frame and series. To work on python, it is essentially necessary to understand these two terms.

There are a lot of reasons why Python is being adopted by Computer Scientists so widely since it is a general-purpose language and is often used for things that are data science and analysis.

So working with python for data projects will make your task easier.

Top 10 Widgets For Flutter Application Development

Hello Everyone! Today we are going to discuss the top 10 Widgets in Flutter for Flutter app developers. We are not taking into account Row, Column, Container, Text as we are going to look into other Widgets that we use daily inFlutter app development services. This tutorial will help beginners in Flutter application development and other Flutter app developers in general. Let's get started!

Safe Area

Safe Area Widget comes into the picture when we can't use the AppBar. Then the superview widget will cover all the areas of the Mobile Phone view including the status bar area. to overcomes this situation we use the Safe Area Widget. Wrap the Scaffold Widget into Safe Area Widget. Safe Area widget tells your layout which is a safe area to render the layout on the mobile phone view.

Wrap

In Flutter app development, we know to display the two or more buttons in a row and column is the most common task. Similarly, when UI layout renders on different mobile screens then we face the Mobile screen width issue to display the two to more buttons in the same row and column. To overcome this situation we used the Wrap widget which wraps its child based on the screen width. Wrap widget also has the property direction which is used for the display of the Wrap widget elements in a horizontal and vertical direction.

RichText 

Wen we need to format our text in the Flutter Mobile Application development then we use the RichText widget, for example, we need to set the Text end character with different colors and sizes from the rest of the text characters then we use the RichText Widget to do this task. we can do it by taking two different Text in the same row and column but it is not a good way to do it.

ClipRRect

ClipRect Widget used to round the corner of the image and another Flutter widget by setting the ClipRRect widget property border-radius based on the requirement. we can also use this widget to make the Flutter widget into a circular shape.

MediaQuery

MediaQuery is a nice tool given by the Flutter SDK to tell the in-depth details likes the size, brightness, the orientation of the device in which the app is running. Based on these details we can change the UI layout orientation to give a nice look and feel to the user.

FutureBuilder 

Let's have an app that loads the data from the internet so this process takes time to get connected with the internet and take the data, process the data then display the data on the device. so we need some sort of technique to show the circular loader on the screen to show the user that data is begin loaded and when the data is there and when to have ready to go then display that data to a user. So you need to manage this process, this is exactly FutureBuilder helps us with.

Flexible 

Flexible is another widget given by Flutter SDK to make the app more responsive. when we need to give the height of any widget some percent of the height of another widget then we used the Flexible widget. The flexible widget provides a property called flex to achieve this.

Also Read: Flutter App Development for Android and iOS Platforms

SizedBox

When we need to give fixed height and width any Flutter SDK widget then we use the SizedBox widget by setting the SizedBox height and width property.

Align 

Align property helps us to align the single widget into its parent widget. suppose we have an only single container widget on the screen and we need to align a widget into the bottom right corner. So we wrap the widget into Align and give it to the alignment bottomRight.

Padding

when we need to set the space around the Flutter SDK widget then we use the Padding widget to give the left, right, top, bottom space of its child widget. we can set all-sided space and only one or two side spaces of the widget based on the requirement that we have.

If you are looking for an experienced Flutter development company to develop a cross-platform mobile app, then you have come to the right place. Drop us a line and we will assist you with your project-related queries. 

Transforming The Entertainment Industry With Virtual Reality

The immersive technologies like augmented and virtual reality continue to transform cross-industry applications, delivering engaging user experiences across devices. Virtual reality has evolved tremendously over recent years and is being used increasingly in gaming, advertising, entertainment, and employee training programs. The real-life simulations and immersive user experiences have led to the widespread adoption of virtual reality in the gaming and entertainment industry. 

That being said, VR applications are effective at providing more personalized user experiences and are more immersive than their AR counterparts. As a result, VR has become a popular medium of entertainment that promises to engage your audience in the best possible manner.  

Let’s explore some popular applications of VR in the entertainment industry and how it drives maximum user engagement and interactivity.

Also read Improving Food Packaging Processes With Augmented Reality

VR Applications In Gaming and Entertainment

Entertainment brands are always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to engage their audience. The advent of next-gen technologies like AR/VR has provided them an effective way to maximize user engagement and boost their revenue. Below are the most popular applications and use cases of virtual reality in the entertainment industry.

Movies and Cinema

The immersive AR/VR technologies are transforming the cinematic experiences across the globe. Several prominent global film festivals like Sundance and Tribeca have introduced VR technology to feature short films, paving way for the interactive movie viewing. VR elements enable viewers to watch through the eyes of the movie characters, making them experience every scene in an immersive environment. Experts predict that it is going to be a leap forward from the modern-day IMAX technology that is improving the movie experiences of millions of people worldwide. Although it is far from going mainstream just yet, several production companies plan to launch IMAX VR centers across the globe.    

VR-based Gaming Applications

The advent of virtual reality has taken gaming to the next level by providing an immersive environment with real-life simulations. VR techniques enable users to experience the thrill and excitement of a video game in a real-world environment. For example, VR makes a gaming experience so immersive and realistic, that gamers feel like they are transported to a whole new world. 

VR-based games eliminate the traditional way of sitting in front of a television screen for hours. With virtual reality, gamers can actually indulge in a game almost as if they are a part of it. Furthermore, VR-based gaming applications allow gamers to interact with technology in a way that energizes them both physically and mentally.   

Sports and Adventure

The transformative aspects of virtual reality have made their way well beyond the closed spaces, bringing more fun to sports and outdoor activities. Users can enter a whole new world where everything looks magical, exciting, and as real as it could get. Virtual reality offers a number of opportunities for sports lovers to experience the heat of the game in the most exciting way. An increasing number of sports events are being shot with 360-degree cameras. These cameras enable authorities to create immersive real-time video footage of sports matches. Watching these videos with a VR headset gives you the impression as if you are running along with the players on the ground.   

The technology is also increasingly popular in virtualization of adventure sports like paragliding, skydiving, and scuba diving. Several leisure brands have set up VR centers where adventure lovers can virtually experience the thrill of blood-pumping adventure activities.   

You may also be interested in Factors Deciding the Cost of An Augmented Reality App.

Other Applications of VR

There is no doubt that virtual reality (VR) holds immense potential to transform the entertainment industry with its innovative aspects. Besides, the immersive technology has several other transformative applications in other fields. For example, VR-based techniques are effective at training a hotel staff with sheer accuracy and efficiency. Similarly, the technology is increasingly used in surgical training. Performing a virtual surgery is always a better way to train aspiring neurosurgeons to handle real-life situations.

It boosts their confidence level and prepares them for the actual surgical procedure which might be discomfited in the first attempt.    

Avail Our VR App Development Services To Delivering Engaging Customer Experiences

We are an AR VR app development company that specializes in building interactive VR apps to meaningfully engage the target audience. Our development team is skilled at using the latest VR development frameworks like OpenVR and Unreal Engine to develop applications that deliver immersive user experiences. We have successfully developed several AR VR apps for e-commerce brands, entertainment companies, and LMS solutions providers from across the globe. If you have an innovative idea to develop a futuristic AR or VR application, drop us a line or contact us for more detail.

Difference Between MEAN Stack and MERN Stack

Developers traditionally developed apps using JavaSript, HTML, and CSS. The apps were simple with complicated User interface (UI). To resolve the issue, technology companies like Google, Facebook introduced app development frameworks that ease the work of application development.  

Oodles Technologies is a well-established MEAN Stack app development company. We develop apps that are feature-rich and easily scalable. 

In this blog, we will discuss Stack frameworks MEAN and MERN. MEAN and MERN are stacks of technologies used for application development. 

 

MEAN Stack 

The components of MEAN include MongoDB, Express.js, AngularJS, and Node.js. The Technologies in MEAN stack are Javascript-Based suitable for developing complex websites and web apps. All four components of MEAN Stack speed up and simplify the development process. It is the fastest-growing open-source framework that enables developers to deploy web applications using popular tools and plugins. 

MERN Stack 

The components of MERN include MongoDB, Express.js, React.js, and Node.js. The only difference between the two frameworks is AngularJS in MEAN is replaced with React.js in MERN. Some developers prefer to use React Native over Angular so for them MERN is perfect. 

THE COMMON FEATURES: Both the stacks are flexible and easy to implement and built apps of the Model-view layout. The components of MEAN and MERN serve different purposes. Let’s explore each of the components in detail: 

1. MongoDB: 

• A schemaless NoSQL document database used by the back-end applications to store data as JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) document. 
• Database and application use JavaScript only. 
• Suitable for creating cloud applications. 
• Provides impeccable performance and storage capacity. 
• Manages Data without compromising on data access. 

2. Express.js: 

• An open-source framework that handles interactions between the frontend and the database teams. 
• Errorless template handling accelerates software development. 
• Prevents Variables overwriting within the shared namespace.  

3. Angular: 

• Google’s popular JavaScript framework. 
• Suitable for creating user-centric apps. 
• Ideal for creating web apps for desktop and mobile use. 
• Offers ready to use templates to create cloud-native apps. 

4. Node.JS: 

• Last but not least, Node.js is the backbone of the MEAN stack.
• Comprises of an Integrated webserver to support the deployment of application and MongoDB database to the cloud. 

React.js is an exception in MERN. Discussion about React.js is discussed in the section where MERN stack benefits are listed. 

 Similarities in MEAN Stack and MERN Stack 

• MEAN and MERN are the open-source frameworks
• Both frameworks are capable of covering the complete software development cycle. They cover the frontend and backend development using JavaScript. 
• The frameworks make the development process seamless by supporting the Model View Controller (MVC) architecture.  
• Both frameworks have a pre-designed set of testing tools. 
• Frameworks have substantial documentation and immense support for the developers 

 

Benefits Of MEAN Stack:

1. MEAN stack makes it easier for the app developers to switch easily between the client and the server. JavaScript friendly frameworks make it easier for the developers to develop apps. With the help of the Node.js component, developers can straight away launch an app without deploying it on a stand-alone server.
2. MEAN stack app developers can easily transfer codes written in one language to another language. 
3. MEAN facilitates developers to seamlessly test an app easily on a cloud platform. 
4. It facilitates app development companies to add information by increasing the filed in the form. 
5. A cost-effective framework that enables developers to create apps with JavaScript only. There is no need to hire other language professionals as the entire app is developed with a few JavaScript professionals only. 

 

Benefits OF MERN Stack

1. MEAN Stack uses React instead of Angular. React is a component that summarizes the state of data. It also keeps a check on how an app is rendered.  With so many components developers can concentrate on the reasoning and development of the application. MERN Stack components communicate through sharing their state information in the form of read-only properties to their sub-components. 
2. Since React Natives runs on the server developers can reuse the code on the server and the browser. Developers can create pages on the server whenever they want. 
3. MERN Stack components are free and opensource. It is backed by community developers to enable MERN Stack developers to add additional features to an app. 
4. Covers complete the software development life cycle including the frontend and the backend development. 
5. MVC architecture support in the MERN stack enables developers to create bug-free apps seamlessly. 
6. Available with a set of pre-built exclusive testing tools.
7. React.JS is a library that is better than a framework. The vast library developers come with a special set of tools that enable web app developers to create apps easily. The developers can choose the library themselves and their functions.

 

Point of Differences Between MEAN and MERN Stack:

Performance

MEAN uses Angular because it is more stable than React. It is one of the most stable JavaScript-based MVC frameworks. It enables developers to effectively manage their files and abstraction in the coding.

MERN uses React.Js  to enable developers to code faster. React’s performance is better than Angular because it does the coding exceptionally faster. In terms of the performance, MERN wins over the MEAN stack. 

Architecture

MEAN stack is preferred for enterprise-level applications. In terms of the architecture MEAN Stack wins the game. MEAN uses Angular that renders with an organized framework to support an MVW and MVC architecture. In both the architectures the UI code and the database are isolated from an intermediate layer.   LinkedIn chose MEAN over MERN because React can make the UI rendering simple but in the end, it is just a library and it can be difficult to rely on MERN for maintenance of the architecture.  

Using THIRD-PARTY LIBRARIES

The development of a large scale app requires the use of third party libraries. Angular .js is a framework that enables developers to use third-party libraries easily. It also supports “$http” calls that enable the developers to build a connection with the backend server. On the other hand, React.js requires libraries to support these calls.

Additional features can be seamlessly added through the MEAN stack because of the support from the Angular. React will require additional configurations to add any additional features to the app. Here also MEAN wins over MERN Stack. 

MEAN is there for a long time whereas MERN is comparatively new.  Famous Companies using Angular instead of React in their app development include YouTube, HBO, Nike, NASA. And companies using React over Angular: PayPal, Dropbox, Uber, Instagram, Netflix, Flipkart. 

Are you still confused with the selection of the right app development framework? In our opinion, Both MEAN and MERN are reliable technologies that enable developers to create light-weight JavaScript applications easily. We design apps using MEAN Stack and MERN stack, based on our client’s preferences.  Connect with our Software app developers today!