85: Why I've Thrown Away All My Smart Devices (You Should Do The Same)

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I've been making my house “dumb” again, and this episode is about why.

After bringing back an old television, building a physical DVD collection, and cutting off appliances that want an internet connection, I started looking more closely at what "smart home" actually means for your privacy.

In a 2017 FTC (Federal Trade Commission) case, Vizio's software was found to have tracked second-by-second viewing across roughly 11 million televisions. The tracking pulled information from cable boxes, external streaming devices, DVD players, and over-the-air broadcasts.

Then there's the Amazon case, where children's voice recordings were kept indefinitely, and thousands of employees reportedly had access to Alexa users' recordings without a business need.

Convenience is how nearly all of this gets through the front door. Preheating an oven from an app sounds harmless until you ask what you're trading for it, and how many points of failure you've added to your household.

People are outraged about Flock cameras on the pole, then walk past a doorbell camera and a voice assistant to get to the couch.

That disconnect is the whole conversation.

You’ll Learn:

[0:00] Introduction

[3:15] Technology stopped serving us and started learning about us

[6:32] The Vizio case and second-by-second viewing data

[8:32] How voice assistants actually record and who listens

[10:08] Amazon kept children's voice recordings and geolocations

[13:35] The strange disconnect between Flock cameras and home devices

[16:48] Convenience is how all of this gets through the front door

[19:38] Backdoor upgrades and the two iPhones that failed the same day

Resources Mentioned:

VIZIO to Pay $2.2 Million to FTC, State of New Jersey to Settle Charges It Collected Viewing Histories on 11 Million Smart Televisions without Users' Consent by Federal Trade Commission | Article

FTC and DOJ Charge Amazon with Violating Children's Privacy Law by Keeping Kids' Alexa Voice Recordings Forever and Undermining Parents' Deletion Requests by Federal Trade Commission | Article

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