Guidelines for Performing Systematic Literature Reviews in the Internet of Things

In the rapidly evolving field of the Internet of Things (IoT), traditional systematic literature review (SLR) guidelines, such as PRISMA, often fall short in addressing the unique technical requirements and interdisciplinary challenges associated with IoT research. This paper introduces TEFA(S) (Things, Edge, Fusion, Application, Security), a novel framework specifically designed to enhance the effectiveness of SLRs in IoT by updating and extending PRISMA. TEFA(S) stands for Things, Edge, Fusion, Application, and Security—components critical to the comprehensive assessment of IoT literature. In addition to revising the guidelines for literature search, identification, and eligibility, TEFA(S) incorporates a structured quality assessment mechanism, including a tiered relevance model for evaluating the ‘Security’ component. This framework supports both qualitative and quantitative assessment, allowing flexibility while maintaining rigor. A dedicated evaluation of TEFA(S) against existing SLR methodologies further clarifies its relevance in technical domains. Empirical validation demonstrates the utility of TEFA(S), while its component-based architecture ensures adaptability across diverse IoT domains, such as smart healthcare, Industrial IoT (IIoT), and cybersecurity. Researchers conducting SLRs in the IoT field are strongly encouraged to adopt TEFA(S) alongside updated PRISMA practices to improve the relevance, reliability, and generalizability of their SLRs.