Page 24 - Enabling digital transformation in smart sustainable cities – Master plan

Enabling digital transformation in smart sustainable cities – Master plan

Table 2: Digital infrastructure funding methods (continued)

Funding mechanism Description
Agreements with private Agreement with private companies to offer funds free of
companies charge to the public

National or multinational Funds coming from national or multinational organizations.
subsidies

Cooperative projects Local government ends up with a project originally created
as a cooperative and community project

Energy Service Companies Companies providing energy related services in terms of
building management systems, street lighting, among
others will either be self-funded or financed by local
governments

e) Data security and electromagnetic fields

All cities need to consider two fundamental topics in order to protect their inhabitants in a new
context of smartness and sustainability: cybersecurity and data security, to protect inhabitants'
data; and electromagnetic fields (EMFs), to address existing concerns of the public around this
topic.

f) Data security

An SSC applies the use of technologies in many different areas of the city (e.g., infrastructure,
resource management, public services, industrial systems, social aspects and security). They
do this in more extensive and intensive ways than traditional cities, and thus generate larger
amounts of valuable data. This information is needed to improve the efficiency of cities. However,
its management can be challenging.

One of the principal objectives of any city is to become a safe place to live for its inhabitants.
In an SSC, inhabitants' security must be expanded to data security (i.e., cybersecurity and data
protection) in order to protect one of its most important resources.

As a result of their complexity and significance within the city's operation, the security of
some smart city services and infrastructures must be prioritized (e.g., smart grids, intelligent
transportation, connected health care, public safety and security or wireless communications
and hotspots).

The information security infrastructure constitutes the technical foundation of the entire system,
and as such, it provides a large number of security functions. The tasks of information security
infrastructure centres include disaster recovery, emergency monitoring, key management,
security management, security evaluation and identity management.

g) Electromagnetic field considerations

SSCs are based on the extensive use of wired and wireless ICTs, to provide city services in a
more efficient way. Scientific research over many decades has enabled national and international
health authorities to establish safety limits for human exposure to EMFs. Exposure limits vary
depending on the EMF frequency and EMF source and incorporate conservative safety margins
for added protection ITU-T K-Sup.4.

15