Last week, Blackberry launched the first-ever ultra-secure enterprise IoT platform ‘Blackberry Spark’ that enables manufacturers to create industrial level Internet of Things with the highest levels of security.

With this initiative, the company has set itself ahead in a market that is rapidly converging towards a place with hyperconnectivity amongst all devices. The highly cited report from Business Insider Intelligence from two years ago predicted that there will be ‘more than 24 billion internet-connected devices’ on earth by the year 2020. This would mean there will be more than 4 devices for every human being present on earth. For such a connected world, security maintenance is of the essence.

We have discussed previously in detail how we need to decide the security prerequisites before IoT reaches its potential. Initiatives by Microsoft through Azure Sphere, and Unified IoT security solutions by Foundries, will become more important as IoT becomes more cost-effective and subsequently more prevalent.

Though the above-mentioned solutions along with many others in the industry are working on making the IoT ecosystem more secure, BlackBerry Spark stands out as a solution that deals with the inevitable fragmentation of the technology by implementing the security measures at the stage of designing itself. Furthermore, it is also an open and extendable platform that allows ‘snap-in’ functionality with partners like AWS, Android Things, Microsoft, Qualcomm, NVIDIA, Baidu, and Samsung, to further eliminate the security issues raised by the fragmentation of IoT.

Indeed, it is the only platform at present that is built for absolute security for industrial or enterprise purposes, with industry-specific safety certifications. Vice President of Enterprise Research at CCS Insight, Nicholas McQuire, has stated “BlackBerry Spark is a bold but necessary step in helping organisations bridge these worlds, creating new connected experiences whilst simplifying and improving security from the chip to the edge.”

 With proper security measures at the design-level and elimination of the fragmentation via the ‘snap-in’ functionality, BlackBerry Spark is all set to accelerate the IoT revolution that will empower the end-consumers to benefit from the connected ecosystem without having to worry about the security of their confidential data. In fact, if we were to believe the company’s statement on the solution, the Spark will simplify it for the users to work with their devices seamlessly in an ecosystem that has ‘military-grade security’ and intuitive interface.

The simplification of the interface plays an important role as the pace at which the digital world is growing makes it increasingly difficult for the organisations to stay ahead of the curve and fulfil their customers’ demands. As Enterprise Research’s Vice President puts it, “Organisations are struggling with the sheer complexity of the IT environment, including the ability to deploy new employee experiences with modern security that protects company data across technologies such as AI, IoT, and mobility.”

 The application of this platform is predicted to have incredible improvements in the Healthcare sector and autonomous automotive. It also has the capacity to streamline patient care with remote monitoring and real-time handling, and can help autonomous vehicles communicate with the centre or with each other in a completely secure environment.

Resources:

https://www.blackberry.com/us/en/products/blackberry-spark-platform

https://www.businessinsider.com/there-will-be-34-billion-iot-devices-installed-on-earth-by-2020-2016-5?IR=T