Smart City- Data Security of Smart Cities

　　From the moment we wake up in the morning and unlock our smartphones, the changes in our faces are recorded. Then, when we use our credit cards to pay for breakfast on our way out, the bank knows exactly what we purchase. Ordering lunch through a takeaway platform at noon means that our dietary choices will be recorded by the platform. As we browse through social media platforms, advertisers silently track our behavior and tailor ads to our preferences. Manufacturers or service providers can even record the usage of smart home devices before bed to improve quality of their products or services. Although these data may seem insignificant, they can become valuable information after analysis. If used by certain parties, it will cause unpredictable results.

　　Much of the development of smart cities revolves around data. The scope of information collection ranges from environmental to personal, and even very private fingerprint information may be collected. Advances in information communication technology and the Internet of Things enable data to be easily transmitted to the cloud, making cyber threats increasingly widespread. Therefore, every step, from data collection to storage transmission, is critical for thread protection. According to IBM's latest report, the average cost of a smart city dealing with a data breach is estimated at $6.1 million, so up to 60% of smart city leaders believe that cybersecurity is the biggest challenge their city may confront.

　　To avoid data security threats, smart cities should conduct risk assessments, including assessing infrastructure security, lowering possible impact of cyber attacks, and developing risk response strategies. Protecting network infrastructure is critical, so implementing secure communication protocols, strengthening authentication, and encryption are all critical. It is thus reasonable to regularly simulate security incidents to test the security of the network environment, and perform security updates of the environment based on different issues. Taken together, these measures are critical in ensuring the security of smart city systems and data, allowing early detection and response to potential security threats.