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Smartwatches For Kids Are a Total Privacy Nightmare (gizmodo.com)
An anonymous reader shares a report: Kids' smartwatches are usually intended to help parents feel at ease that their children are safe when they're not around. But as it turns out, a number of these devices may do more harm than good. A 49-page report on smartwatches for children details all the ways in which they are a security nightmare. The report (PDF), conducted by the Norwegian Consumer Council (NCC) and European security firm Mnemonic, analyzed four kids' smartwatches -- Gator 2, Tinitell, Viksfjord, and Xplora. According the NCC's report, two of the aforementioned devices were vulnerable to hackers, affording them the ability to remotely control the apps on the device. Through a breached device, the NCC says a hacker could access information on a child's whereabouts in real-time, uncover their personal information, and even communicate with the child. What's more, one of the devices could allow someone "with some technical knowledge" to discreetly listen to the child's surroundings. Beyond these gross invasions of privacy, the Council said certain key features of these devices -- an SOS button and a feature that alerts parents when kids leave virtual boundaries -- were unreliable. The report also notes issues regarding collecting user data -- only one of the product's terms and services allowed parents to opt in to or out of data collection. And one watch, the Xplora app, gave up children's data to marketers, the NCC said.
Oh wait....
...I bet pedo's are giving these smartwatches away for free everywhere now.
What this world is coming to - is for you and me to decide.
so give them phonez. new phonez!
catapult: slurp
Just don't let Pennywise on the Interwebs.
Problem solved.
Smartwatches are a "total privacy nightmare" because they enable parents to spy on their kids.
Maybe we need to start letting people experience the full consequences of their choices, instead of constantly trying to protect them from themselves.
The consequences here are most likely intrusive marketing data collection and targeted marketing campaigns. If those children grow up to realize their parents sold them out, maybe they will be less likely to do so in the future to their own children.
Can we prosecute the hackers for child porn if we catch them with a few minutes of particularly sensitive accelerometer data?
...I don't mean for the kids, I mean for the parents.
I've had 4 kids in their 20s now, and one of the hardest parts about parenting is understanding that these wonderful, exciting, challenging little creeps for which you feel more love than you could have ever previously imagined...need to live their own lives. Away from you, your sight, and the 24/7 concern you have for their well-being.
The world really isn't full of rabid dogs in every park, sexual predators around every corner, terrorists in every airplane, or thugs in every city. It feels that way sometimes, but it really isn't.
Just because you don't know where they are at this moment doesn't mean they're using drugs or getting murdered.
Teach them everything you can about the world and being responsible and smart. And then let them grow up, and get the fuck out of their way.
If you're like most parents, you'll never stop worrying about them. That's fine, that's your job. But as a parent who holds THEIR well-being above your own, you can't let your self-indulgent worry destroy their ability to be actualized people themselves. Grow up - and learn to keep that crap to yourself. Let them enjoy being them.
-Styopa
If your washing machine can destroy the watch like ours did, then there should be no concern of privacy.
Now, if the washing machine is a IOT smart appliance and it detects that the smartwatch is in the load, then that is a whole other discussion.
I was fortunate, the washing machine my parents had in the 70's was not an IOT device. It did not know that the watch was inside it's tub.
Most Respectfully Yours Mark Allyn Bellingham, Washington
http://www.lg.com/us/cell-phon...
They're bascially dumbphones they can wear on their wrist. We can call them(and even auto-answer if they're not picking up), and they can call us. There are only 4 phone numbers that can call in or out, so no telemarketer spam. There's GPS tracking too, which is spotty but generally good enough. And since they're dumbphones they stay charged all week. They have some fund sounds and voice changing features too, and it can say the current time. We bought them used for $35 each, and Verizon charges us $5 a month for each. Not too bad. If they didn't gouge us with a one-time $32 activation fee per watch we'd be pretty happy.
Now I'm not saying the dumbwatches can't be hacked...but it's a lot more work without internet access!
(insert witty/esoteric/dumb quote here)
In what way smart watches for adults less of a nightmare?
sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
Before you could strap a cancer-inducing electro-nanny to their wrist. . .
And just how are these devices any different than all the other IoT devices that phone home tons of personal information about you and your surroundings to their real owners (the manufacturers) so that they can mine it, sell it, and push ads to you based off it?
"Everything to ever come out of Silicon Valley is a total privacy nightmare"
Privacy is obsolete. The machine is always watching.
Smart means you consent to give up your privacy. It collects all your data to provide you with convenience. What is your protection? A Prvacy Policy they they can change just by posting it on their website. Smart means their spying on you.