The internet has evolved. Now, it’s more than a tool for people to connect and share information. It’s the conduit that connects an array of devices together. It's commonly referred to as the Internet of Things (IoT). But while sifting through the
potential of IoT, we're faced with another concept – the Web of Things (WoT). Unlike its predecessor, WoT aims to seamlessly integrate IoT devices into the fabric of the World Wide Web. This way we can achieve even more accessibility and
interconnectedness between machines.

But this is no simple task. In fact, it comes with many challenges
and opportunities.

The Challenge of Interoperability

A major hurdle in building a Web of Things lies within machine connectivity. Unlike traditional web services, IoT devices come in all different shapes, sizes, and functions. They even have different communication protocols and data formats. So it’s
hard to unite these separate systems in order to create a cohesive web across everything.

HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and Resource Description Framework (RDF) are two standards that help with achieving interoperability in WoT. Developers can use them to make uniform interfaces for IoT devices. This allows seamless
communication between all things connected over various networks.

However, it's still hard to get widespread adoption on these standards because older devices may not support modern protocols which means they need backward compatibility mechanisms.

Security and Privacy Concerns

When you think about how many things are connected on a network you also have to consider security risks as well as privacy concerns associated with using one.

In terms of security – every device connected is prone to an entry point for cyber-attacks. Which puts greater stakes on ensuring robust security measures throughout every device connected because vulnerabilities are bound to be discovered by attackers who want nothing more but access your entire network.

Addressing these concerns will require a multifaceted approach including device-level security measures, network encryption protocols, and stringent access control mechanisms. And fairly so because it's the only way to keep these devices from being exposed to vulnerabilities in order to keep the entire WoT ecosystem trustworthy. Please visit IXON (Germany) for more information.

Scalability and Resource Constraints

The internet we currently have is what we all know as edge computing. Which means data is processed at the source rather than relying on centralized cloud servers. It’s been proven that by doing this you can reduce latency, minimize bandwidth consumption, and enhance the overall responsiveness of IoT connected devices.

However, that doesn’t mean doing it for every device automatically solves all issues. Especially when you consider devices with limited processing power, memory capacity, and energy sources.

Creating efficient communication protocols and resource management strategies are still necessary in order to ensure scalability and longevity throughout the Web of Things infrastructure. Nevertheless, adopting lightweight communication protocols like Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) will help alleviate some of that overhead associated with transmitting data over constrained networks.