Double-Edged Agriculture 4.0: Hodiernal Expedient Technologies and Cyber-Security Challenges

Digitalization and intelligent systems have engulfed all dimensions and vicinity of existence. The intense fusion of hodiernal information technology and archaic agriculture has ushered in the epoch of agriculture 4.0, invariably reputed as smart agriculture. Variegated operational or forthcoming technologies reckon in agriculture 4.0, e.g., algae feedstock, automation, hydroponics, nanotechnology, genome editing, cognitive computing, blockchain, and machine learning, may have far-reaching implications for future agriculture and food systems and radical rudimentary potential. Although the profusion benefits of this Fourth Revolution abound, many unresolved issues and stumbling blocks must be conquered to make this paradigm shift feasible. Future solutions will coerce data availability and accuracy as vital factors to assist farmers, also security will become indispensable for constructing vigorous and efficacious systems. Security deals with difficulties like compatibility, scarce funds, and gargantuan data as smart agriculture incorporate a huge gamut and volume of resources. In this frame of reference, the authors opine that the inclusion and exclusion impact of Agriculture 4.0 technologies require ancillary scrutiny. This paper articulates the core technologies of agriculture 4.0 with an explicit focus on its applications in veritable contexts whilst delving into security issues (chiefly cyber-security). This research is envisaged to have a pragmatic influence on agriculture 4.0, emphasizing paradigms and security measures to aid farm stakeholders to navigate the firm's transition to digitization.