1. Real Situation 2019: IoT Projects – Forced Cloud Instead of Autonomy
In 2019, Europe’s dependence on centralized cloud solutions and gatekeepers in the IoT sector became increasingly evident. Even technically stable offline solutions—such as Fronius inverters or BYD batteries—were equipped by manufacturers with permanent online connections.
A concrete example: A PV system with Fronius inverters, operated since 2016, ran for years without issues offline and without updates—but when retrofitting a second battery, a permanent internet connection was suddenly required.
At the same time, an own smart home pilot project showed that autonomous, unidirectional systems (e.g., alerting without feedback channel) are technically feasible—without forced cloud dependency. Instead of using cloud input like real-time clocks or weather data, the system worked with local sensors (day/night detection, motion detectors) and, for example, dynamically adjusted the heating temperature to the PV power surplus.
However, such solutions remained the exception: 90% of IoT firmware had critical security vulnerabilities in 2019, which attackers could exploit for botnets or sabotage.
The result: Cyberattacks on IoT devices and critical infrastructure caused €100 billion in damage per year in Germany alone. In the German industry, losses from sabotage, data theft, and espionage amounted to €43 billion (2018–2019). Dependence on US clouds (Cloud Act) and the opaque algorithms of gatekeepers (Google, Amazon) exacerbated the outflow of value creation from Europe.
2. Development Without Obstruction: IoT Development from the Edge, Not from the Cloud
If the development of Trusted WEB 4.0 had not been obstructed, European IoT development would have fundamentally differed from the American approach:
- WAN Anonymity as Standard: Users would not have risked identification by manufacturers or third parties—a central principle of Trusted WEB 4.0.
- Autonomous Devices: The focus would have been on edge computing: devices with local AI that function without cloud connection (as in the pilot project).
- User-Controlled Data Spaces: Instead of handing data over to gatekeepers, Personal Digital Systems (PDS) would have ensured sovereignty over one’s own data—and thus retained billions in value creation in Europe.
- Open Ecosystems: Interoperable IoT solutions would have broken the monopolies of Google, Amazon & Co. and strengthened European alternatives.
3. Future Perspective (2026): Edge Computing as the Last Chance to Rethink
In 2026, it is clear: Edge computing still offers the opportunity to realign IoT development. The risks of centralized cloud solutions—blackouts from manipulated updates, data leaks, dependence on US law—are avoidable:
- Decentralized Edge Solutions (e.g., Fronius inverters in offline mode) prove that autonomous devices are technically feasible and more secure.
- AI in IoT can run locally on devices—instead of in the clouds of gatekeepers. This prevents data monopolies and strengthens Europe’s digital sovereignty.
- Trusted WEB 4.0 can limit the power of gatekeepers through user-controlled data spaces and WAN anonymity—and thus avoid the damage caused by cyberattacks as well as high losses in the European industry.
On one hand, devices should in the future offer, trade, and bill their own services—this only works with WAN anonymity.
On the other hand, there isn’t even an interface between pellet heaters, inverters, and IR heaters. Here, standards will be agreed upon in the EU-D-S. Open interfaces will enable applications in the EU-D-S without each one having to be planned by the manufacturer.
The blockade of alternative approaches (like Trusted WEB 4.0) costs Europe not only money but also technological leadership and democratic shaping power.
4. GAP 2019: Remote Control Through Platform Interests
Carry-over from previous years:
- 2000: Mannesmann takeover – €133 billion (loss of European sovereignty)
- 2001–2007: Unemployment due to GraTeach blockade – €18 billion
- 2004–2006: Revenue losses due to US platforms – €54.3 billion
- 2003–2018: Loss of trust in economy & digitalization – €15,236 billion
- 2008: Financial crisis (10% of €5.1 trillion) – €510 billion
- 2009: Cyber damages – €24 billion
- 2011: Cyber damages – €9 billion
- 2010: Wrong digital strategy – €70.5 billion
- 2010: GDP decline in the EU – €200 billion
- 2011: Cyber damages – €9 billion
- 2012: Cyber attacks – €24 billion
GAP 2019:
- Loss of trust (19% of 2019 GDP: €16 trillion) – €3,021 billion
Total GAP 2019: €19,299.8 billion
Trusted WEB 4.0 technologies such as Finder (1999), getmysense (2002), GISAD (2003), EU-D-S (2004), and WAN Anonymity (2007) could have served as the foundation for a European digital alternative without obstruction.
Sources
- Handelsblatt: Warning of Blackout Risks Due to Manipulable IoT Updates (2019)
- datensicherheit.de: 90% of IoT Firmware with Critical Security Vulnerabilities (2019)
- DW: €100 Billion in Damage from Cyberattacks in Germany (2019)
- datensicherheit.de: €43 Billion in Damage in the German Industry (2018–2019)
- Digital Engineering Magazine: €9.6 Billion Wasted Software in Europe (2019)
- finders.de: Offline IoT Pilot Project
- FAZ: Threat Posed by Cloud Services to Europe
