An automated corrosion monitor, named the Internet of Things atmospheric corrosion monitor (IoT ACM) has been developed. IoT ACM is based on electrical resistance sensor and enables accurate and continuous measurement of corrosion data of metallic materials. The objective of this research is to study the characteristics of atmospheric corrosion by analyzing the acquired corrosion data from IoT ACM. Employing data processing and data analysis methods to research the acquired corrosion data of steel, the atmospheric corrosion characteristics implied in the corrosion data can be discovered. Comparing the experiment results with the phenomenon of previous laboratory experiment and conclusions of previously published reports, the research results are tested and verified. The experiment results show that the change regulation of atmospheric corrosion data in the actual environment is reasonable and normal. The variation of corrosion depth is obviously influenced by relative humidity, temperature and part of air pollutants. It can be concluded that IoT ACM can be well applied to the conditions of atmospheric corrosion monitoring of metallic materials and the study of atmospheric corrosion by applying IoT ACM is effective and instructive under an actual atmospheric environment.