RFID, NFC, BLE Technologies

Lecture 10: RFID, NFC, BLE (February 19th)

• RFID includes an RFID tag, reader, and a processing computer or network.
• Passive RFID tags do not need a battery and are activated by radio waves from the reader.
• Passive tags typically read up to 20 feet, have unlimited lifespans, and cost between $0.05 to $1.50.
• Active RFID tags are battery powered and can be read from distances of 100ft to 100mph.
• Active tags also have unlimited lifespans but cost $20 to several hundred.
• RFID readers detect and decode data from RFID tags before sending the information to a computer or database via antennas.
• Fixed RFID readers are mounted in locations like warehouses and toll booths for automated scanning.
• Handheld RFID readers are used in inventory tracking and retail.

RFID vs Barcode

• Barcodes require line of sight, can only be read individually, and cannot be read if damaged or dirty.
• Barcodes cannot be updated and are prone to human error.
• RFID does not need line of sight, can read multiple tags at once, and can get dirty.
• RFID also allows for new information to be added and lacks human error.

NFC (Near Field Communications)

• NFC is similar to Apple Pay and hotel keys, and is a subset of RFID that requires close contact (2 inches).
• Unlike RFID, NFC allows devices to connect for data sharing and pairing and is cheap ($0.10).

Bluetooth Low Energy

• Bluetooth transmits signals, uses low power, and does not need to pair.
• It Can operate with a battery for extended time.
• Beacons, like Airtags, broadcast unique identifiers and are opened when a phone enters app range, distance can then be detected.

Lecture 11: Internet of Things (February 24th)

• IoT includes a collective network of devices that communicate between devices and the cloud.
• IoT components include sensors that sense touch, electricity, and temperature.
• Connectivity for IoT is achieved through plugs, Bluetooth, and WiFi.
• People and processes enable customer support and updates for IoT.
• Four significant IoT segments include wearables like smart watches and VR, smart homes comprising smart speakers and appliances.
• Smart cities utilizing smart streetlights and public transport, plus smart industry with factory robots are all part of IoT.
• Pittsburgh Surtrac is a scalable urban traffic control system that uses software to analyze data from cameras, sensors, and signal controllers, which reduces travel time by 25%.
• Syracuse Smart City uses smart street lights that save money and are controllable by first responders.
• Digital twins are virtual replicas that update in real-time using IoT data.
• IoT gathers data through sensors and feeds it to a digital model for simulation.

Information Value Loop

• The information value loop involves creating using sensors, communicating to transfer information, aggregating data from multiple sources, analyzing for patterns, and acting to create change from findings.

Lecture 12: Cloud Computing (February 26th)

• Cloud computing stores data on the internet and runs applications in the cloud.
• Types of cloud computing include On-Prem, IaaS, and SaaS.
• IaaS(Infrastructure as a Server) addresses scenarios like iPhone launches with expected traffic spikes, where purchasing servers may result in underutilization later.
• SaaS(Software as a Service) offers consumer-grade applications like Gmail, iCloud, and Spotify.
• Virtualization creates software-based versions of computing resources.
• Virtualization also allows efficient allocation and sharing of physical computing resources, forming the base for cloud computing technologies.

Benefits of Cloud Computing

• Cloud computing enables agility for deploying technology, elasticity to scale resources, and cost savings by only paying for usage.

Enterprise Cloud Providers

• Microsoft 365 apps and Amazon EC2/S3 are major providers.
• EC2 provides elastic compute cloud(SaaS), and S3 offers simple storage service (IaaS).

Lecture 13: Networks (March 3rd)

• The defense department funded the internet, which led to transistors, silicon chips, radar, and jet airplanes.
• Government-funded projects occurred because basic research can be uncertain and expensive for a single company.
• ARPANET (1969) was funded by the US defense department ARPA and was intended for computers at research institutions to communicate.
• ARPANET was also the precursor to the modern internet, built with Advanced Research Projects Agency Network.
• the Internet Protocol Suite enables data transmission.

IPv4 vs IPv6

• IPv4 uses a set of four bytes, but has limited addresses available (4 billion).
• IPv6 uses a set of 8 hexadecimal values where the Domain name is equivalent to the IP address.

Top-Level Domain Names

• The six original U.S. top-level domain names are .com, .edu, .gov, .int, .net, and .org.
• Restricted domain names require meeting specific criteria.
• Unrestricted domain names can be used by anyone for any purpose.
• ICANN manages the domain name system and delegates control over each top-level domain to a domain name registry.
• WIPO handles domain name disputes.

Lecture 14: Blockchain (March 5th)

• Bitcoin was originally created due to the 2008 financial crisis and failure of large banks.
• Bitcoin aimed to create a decentralized monetary system.
• Blockchain provides a distributed ledger of transactions with its history.
• Each block contains transaction information as well as the transaction information of the previous block.
• The transaction is hashed, or encrypted.
• The hash function is the key encrypted component that ensures security for the coin.
• Each block has its own transaction data and hashes of all its data plus the previous block's hash.

Uses of Blockchain

• Blockchain is used in cryptocurrencies that allow secure, decentralized transactions and eliminates the need for banks while reducing transaction fees.

NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens)

• NFTs can be anything digital, such as art, songs, or videos, and create a digital certificate of ownership via blockchain.
• Non-fungible means it's unique and cannot be replaced, similar to a commodity like sneakers or baseball cards.
• NFT creators can earn royalties, while the owner can do what they please with their bought NFT.

Lecture 14: Security (March 17th)

• Data breaches occur when someone accesses computerized private information without authorization.
• PII, or Personally Identifiable Information, is private data like social security numbers.
• Steganography hides a message inside something else, making the message not obvious.

Cryptography

• Cryptography transforms information to hide it.
• Encryption scrambles information to be unreadable, and decryption unscrambles information to read it.
• Symmetric cryptography uses AES where the same key encrypts and decrypts.
• AES Key Lengths include AES-128 (10 rounds), AES-192 (12 rounds), AES-256 (14 rounds), and is used to secure wifi.
• Asymmetric cryptography / RSA became popular in the 90's with the rise of internet and e-commerce.
• Asymmetric encryption uses public and private keys where the public key can be shared, but the private key decrypts.
• RSA secures connections over untrusted networks and is slower than symmetric encryption.
• Hash functions are one-way functions that most commonly use SHA, and are used for passcode storage and blockchain.
• Caesar Shift is the most simple encryption technique, shifting letters in the alphabet by a certain amount of numbers.

Caesar Number Key

• Using a key like 623 transforms "APPLE" by shifting "A" 6 positions, "P" 2 positions, etc.

Lecture 15: Privacy (March 19th)

• Digital threats are part of cybercrime.
• Nation States are interested in intellectual property/sabotage.
• Hacktivists are interested in brand damage and ideological views.
• Cyberterrorists are interested in data destruction.
• Cybercriminals are interested in financial gain.

Phishing, Smishing, Vishing

• Phishing is fake emails used to steal data.
• Smishing is text messages used to steal data.
• Vishing is phone calls used to steal data.

Social Engineering

• Social engineering uses psychological methods by giving people prizes to get them to give up data.

Dark Web

• Stolen information is sold and attackers use illegal marketplaces.

Cookies

• Cookies are small text files that a computer stores.
• 1st party cookies are only generated by visited websites.
• 3rd party cookies are generally generated through advertisement.

Privacy Laws

• No federal comprehensive legislation for privacy exists.
• The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act protects personal financial information.
• HIPAA protects medical records.
• FERPA resists disclosure of educational records.
• PCI-DSS covers credit card information.
• CPRA is an updated version of CCPA allowing consumers to obtain/delete info, prevent sale, corect info and access all info not just last 12 months.
• The CCPA is the California Consumer Privacy Act, and GDPR is the General Data Protection Regulation.
• Ransomware is malicious software that encrypts a computer's data while demanding a ransom for the password.

Lecture 16: Artificial Intelligence (March 24th and 26th)

• The Dartmouth Conference gathered AI pioneers together in 1956.
• Geoffrey Hinton is considered the godfather of AI and won a Nobel Prize in physics for work in AI.

AI Definitions

• Machine Learning studies computer algorithms that improve automatically through experience and data without explicit programming.
• Neural networks use AI to teach computers to process data like humans and recognize handwriting and images.
• Natural Language Processing (NLP) enables computers to understand, interpret, and generate human language and is in translation, text analysis, and speech recognition.
• Large Language Models (LLM) are AI systems (subsections of neural networks) trained on large amounts of text to generate human-like text.
• Machine Learning involves training a computer to recognize patterns in historical data, to make predictions, like those to use for purchase recommendations (Amazon).
• Foundation Models are generative AI which are AI systems trained with lots of info that predict words that are likely to come next..
• The technology behind foundation models rely on transformers, a deep learning model using GPT (Generation Pre-trained Transformer).
• More parameters enables LLMs to more complex patterns and more niche relationships in language.
• LLMs are not always better with more parameters.

Generative AI

• Generative AI can create content (text, images, video, sounds) and used for creating and summarizing content and to generate new images, video and audio.
• Platforms of AI include Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok, Llama, and Perplexity.

Prompt Engineering

• Prompt engineering creates specific inputs to guide AI models towards useful and relevant outputs and requires clarity, context, structure, and experimentation.
• Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) connects LLMs to external information sources and retrieves relevant data from a trusted source.
• RAG augments Data is added to the prompt which improve response, is easy to implement, but is slow and expensive.

Automation vs Augmentation

• Augmentation helps with a task, while automation automatically performs a task.

Agentic AI

• Agentic AI utilize tools to accomplish goals with minimal human oversight, but they have not yet been able to self-initiate steps such as observe, plan, and act.

Ethics & AI

• AI systems should refrain from sharing instructions for dangerous procedures.
• Further, AI systems should avoid demonstrating harmful biases or taking position on sensitive topics.

Statement of Risk

• Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority, similar to other societal-scale risks.

Responsible AI

• Responsible AI includes fairness, transparency, privacy, security, and ethical use.
• The EU AI Act includes risk types such as unacceptable risk, where AI poses an unacceptable risk to rights and safety.
• The Act includes high risk, where AI affects fundamental rights, health, and safety, and limited risk, with transparency obligations.

AI Action Plan

• The AL Action Plan aims to secure AI dominance in the US.