Exploiting Big Data from Mobile Device Sensor-Based Apps: Challenges and Benefits

In the world of big data, organizations are increasingly turning to mobile devices as new sources of data derived from continuously monitoring a wide range of processes and situations. Mobile devices can facilitate the gathering of data from a diverse set of internal and external3 stakeholders, including employees, customers and citizens willing to “donate” their data. Moreover, this data can be used in myriad ways. For example, sensor data on how an automobile is driven is providing big benefits for organizations ranging from government agencies to insurers.4,5 Facilitated by the “Internet of Things (IOT),” donated sensor data generated from users’ mobile devices provides important new opportunities. As originally conceived, the IOT includes all kinds of devices connected to the Internet and to each other, generating sensor-based signals independent of human intervention. As noted by Ashton,6 “We need to empower computers with