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Vizio Settles With FTC, Will Pay $2.2 Million and Delete User Data (venturebeat.com)
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) today announced that smart TV maker Vizio has agreed to pay $2.2 million to settle a case involving the TVs' data collection techniques. From a report on VentureBeat: Vizio allegedly collected data on what people viewed on 11 million of its TVs and then shared the data with third parties, without informing people about the data collection or receiving consent. As part of the settlement with the FTC and the New Jersey Attorney General, Vizio must also delete data that it collected prior to March 1, 2016, and implement a data privacy program that is to be evaluated twice a year, according to a statement. The commission voted 3-0 in favor of the ruling, according to the statement.
And how much did they profit from selling that data?
Some people die at 25 and aren't buried until 75. -Benjamin Franklin
If you think they are really going to "delete" the data, I have a bridge to sell you... It's been sold/rented/spindled/mutilated several times by now...
I was in the market for a TV last year and this sort of stuff is why I ruled out Vizio immediately. Everyone wants to compete on price so they have to make it up somewhere else. Pretty sure we'll soon be paying a subscription for the content AND the TV you watch it on. Well, some people will, not me. I'm watching less and less on TV each year.
I recently bought a Samsung. I would have gone the cheaper Vizio route but this issue held me off. Samsung isn't necessarily better but at least they tell you ahead of time in the terms and you can simply not connect it to the internet if you so wish. Vizio was deceptive and unrepentant about it. That lost them a sale from me.
That said, I do like the online features of my Samsung but I can see this getting very heavy handed in the future where it simply wont work without an internet connection.
But if you ask permission... buried in subparagraph 52a, section c page 382, of an on screen EULA with an easy accept (whether you read it or not) button, all is somehow okay.
Silence is a state of mime.
Just don't connect it to your router. Problem solved.
No. That does NOT solve the "problem". I don't particularly care if anyone sees my viewing habits, because the worst that could happen is that they die of boredom. What I care about is living in a pervasive surveillance state, where no one can be assured of privacy in any aspect of their lives. A solution that only works for the tiny minority that are diligent and informed does not solve that problem.
Doesn't every company do this?
No. I am sure some do, but that is illegal. Others give notice, or even ask for consent. Others sell anonymized data. Others, such as Google, do not sell personal data, but instead do the advertising directly on behalf of their clients. That is legal.