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Telefonica Tech partners with Fibocom and aitos.io to integrate IoT and Blockchain

Telefonica Tech, Fibocom Wireless Inc., and aitos.io, have signed a collaboration partnership to create joint solutions combining IoT and Blockchain technologies. Telefonica Tech is the unit that encompasses the digital businesses of Cloud, Cybersecurity and IoT, Big Data & Blockchain. Fibocom Wireless Inc. is a global supplier of wireless communication modules and solutions in the sector of IoT, and aitos.io, is a technology start-up focusing on integrated innovation in the Internet of Things (IoT) and Blockchain.

The adoption of Internet of Things technology is growing quickly, and it’s predicted that by 2025 there will be 55.7 billion connected devices in the world collecting information. So, it is becoming critical for companies to ensure the veracity of the information that the devices collect, but also the identity of the devices, their integrity and that they have not been tampered with. Blockchain emerges as the right technology that can help to verify the information, as well as mitigate the scalability and security issues associated with IoT.

This collaboration has started with the creation of a Proof of Concept to integrate the software implemented by aitos.io, BoAT blockchain application framework SDK, Fibocom’s 5G devices and the Telefonica Tech’s TrustOS platform. As a result, have accomplished the 5G  IoT Blockchain integration success story in a matter of weeks, thanks to TrustOS and its identity module, TrustID, that easily connects with blockchain technology and enables the device to directly interact to the blockchain ledger eliminating any type of intermediary. It confirms Blockchain’s potential to complement other technologies such as the Internet of Things or 5G.

Internet of Things brings us a link between the physical world and the digital world, and combined with blockchain technology provide us an increased transparency and an efficient way of tracing and verifying any kind of information gathered by the sensors embedded in the devices.

5G technology low latency and ubiquity enables the IOT Blockchain-backed solutions to record immutable evidence of what is going on surrounding the devices with zero infrastructure in real time. This cannot only be applied to industry 4.0 use cases like supply chain management or manufacturing processes monitoring. Thanks to this implementation and how TrustOS manages the authentication and access to the system, it’s possible to avoid unauthorised tampering or unexpected updates.

Jose Luis Nunez, head of blockchain in Telefonica Tech, says, “The convergence of two technologies such as IOT and blockchain plus 5G connectivity is inevitable. As connected devices multiply, it is critical to demonstrate the trustworthiness of the information that devices exchange. Blockchain can play a relevant role to build trust in these ecosystems.

This proof of concept is the first successful case where it is demonstrated that Blockchain technology adds value and adds that extra layer of trust to operations. Telefonica is very excited about this collaboration with aitos.io and Fibocom and we look forward to continue advancing and positioning ourselves with this type of solutions in Industry 4.0”.

Ronnie Cohen, SVP sales & business development of Fibocom, says, “We are glad and proud to collaborate with Telefonica and aitos.io on introducing this cutting edge blockchain technology for the Internet of Things (IoT). “This unique synergy with Fibocom’s advanced 5G module integrated with aitos.io BoAT SDK + TrustOS and implemented via Telefonica Tech’s 5G networks marks a new IoT era where securing the data is no longer a nice option to have, it is a must.

We are ready to support Telefonica and aitos.io with enabling innovative blockchain solutions via its various wireless modules ranging from 4G (NB, CAT-M, CAT-1, etc.) all the way to 5G “

Leo Lin, CEO of aitos.io, says, “We are proud to cooperate with Telefonica Tech and Fibocom to promote the concept of Blockchain IoT module globally using our BoAT blockchain application framework embedded into Fibocom’s 5G IoT Module to easily access Telefonica’s TrustOS Blockchain network and TrustID decentralised Identity service.

This PoC builds upon the successes of integrating the Internet of Things with the Blockchain to prove monetised value with data ownership, integrity and provenance. We are looking forward to expanded cooperation with Telefonica and Fibocom to enable more and more IoT devices with strong cryptographically verifiable decentralised identity of their origin on the blockchain which will build in great value for trust and identity in broadening Industrial IoT sectors for Industry 4.0″.

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