CES 2015: FTC Head Warns About Data Grabbed By Smart Gadgets

mpicpp sends this quote from the BBC: A "deeply personal" picture of every consumer could be grabbed by futuristic smart gadgets, the chair of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has warned. Speaking at CES, Edith Ramirez said a future full of smart gadgets that watch what we do posed a threat to privacy. The collated data could create a false impression if given to employers, universities or companies, she said. Ms Ramirez urged tech firms to make sure gadgets gathered the minimum data needed to fulfill their function (PDF). The internet of things (IoT), which will populate homes, cars and bodies with devices that use sophisticated sensors to monitor people, could easily build up a "deeply personal and startlingly complete picture" of a person's lifestyle, said Ms Ramirez."

Comments

Or just don't use them ...

[gstoddart]

These things always have had a privacy risk. The only way to win is to not even play.

I don't trust the companies who make these things ... neither to competently implement security, nor to adhere to any restrictions on what they collect.

Most apps already collect far more information than they fess up to.

So, I'm sorry, but me and my tinfoil hat will look at all of these devices (as well as the crap which is the 'smart' home) and just simply not buy them or use them.

As much as anything, they're about gathering analytics information for marketing ... everything else they do is of little value.