While It’s common knowledge that WE watch tv, do our own tv’s watch us back? The answer is yes and no. In the traditional sense, no, our TVs are not watching our every move and reporting them back to the government or anything wild like that. Instead, they keep track of what we’re watching, how long we are watching, and other sorts of information like that.
They can take this information and keep it to themselves to recommend different shows and programs, but they can also send this information to other companies so our advertisements can be more tailored towards us and what we want to see. More often than not these advertisements get us to buy into things like Hulu Plus, Netflix, Disney plus, etc. There are cases though where they can send our information to bigger companies for products that are not tv related. There have even been cases of people suing bigger companies because their information has been sold.
TVs are not the only electronics to do this as well. We heard of similar cases in phones and Alexas taking our information and storing it. With Electronics doing this, how do you feel? Do you think it is appropriate for companies to do this without stating this first? Are you nervous that companies hold your information?
www.nytimes.com/2021/01/25/technology/why-your-tv-spies-on-you.html
Hi Nicole!
This concern is very prominent in our lives today. We have known for a decent amount of time that platforms like Instagram, Twitter, Google, and other sources are selling our information to large corporations. But do we know how much information is being sold and what information is being sold? That’s where it gets fuzzy. Companies rely on this information to reach a larger crowd of consumers. However, it is not always ethical.
I think companies and big corporations that are taking our information and selling it to other companies and corporations should tell us. They should make it simple for us to understand what exactly they are doing and we can choose to agree to it or not. Websites are now using “cookies” that we can choose to accept or decline. These “cookies” help track our information, like what we are clicking on and how long we view something for. I think this is a step in the right direction because it allows us to have a say in the matter.
Everyone knows the Amazon Alexa as a helpful at-home tool that can do many commands and tasks hands-free. However with Alexa always being on and listening waiting for you to say “Alexa”, how much of our lives is she hearing? I think having a tool like this is very beneficial and helpful in our everyday lives but is scary that she is listening in on our every conversation. Alexa has a mute feature that allows you to disable her so she isn’t listening in meaning she can’t perform any tasks until you unmute her. With this feature, I think it allows people to feel more comfortable having an Alexa.
To answer your question I am nervous about companies holding my information. If they can hold shopping data or data that isn’t really important they most likely to find and hold private and more important information about us, and what will they do with that information.
Source:
https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/amazons-alexa-never-stops-listening-to-you/
I feel similar to you in how it can be frightening that our voice-activated technology is constantly listening to us. I have an Amazon Alexa and when I first got it, I remember my friends and family commenting about how scary it was that “she” is always listen. After doing some research about Alexa’s and other similar Amazon products, I am not too surprised by how they use the information from listening to conversations, and so I’m not too nervous that these companies are holding my information. While it is a breach of privacy, I consistently use social media platforms which do just the same. Management of large amounts of data from a user is part of the platform’s way to guess what interests you and therefore what you might buy in the future. I feel as though it would be hypocritical of me to claim that smart TV’s make me nervous about my privacy when I am constantly feeding companies information about myself while using their service.
Also, Alexa’s can be helpful on listening into the right conversations, for example if a crime has been committed, judges have issued warrants for Alexa’s voice recordings, which can be extremely helpful in legal trials. There are also some legal protections to the customers as a result of California’s Anti-Eavesdropping Act that requires companies to ask for customer consent before recording, but often times that limits the capabilities of the device making for compromise. All in all, modern technology is always using our information for research or financial gain and Smart TV’s and Alexa’s are just another player in the game.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/05/06/alexa-has-been-eavesdropping-you-this-whole-time/
To a certain extent, I am nervous about what and how much information is being collected about me without my knowledge. At the same time, I don’t mind too much because I think it’s interesting to study how our data is collected and used specifically in advertising (my major). I always notice that things I shop for online tend to end up on my facebook home feed as an advertisement. This seemingly creepy phenomenon is very common and not AS creepy as many of us think.
Last year in my introduction to advertising class, we learned about programmatic media buying and demand site platforms (DSP’s). Advertisers who are looking to target certain groups of people or consumers can access specific data such as location, age, as well as websites and links you’ve visited. They then use this data to target you. Within an instant, real time bidding (RTB) happens, the ad space is sold and then showed to you.
For example, if I was shopping for heeled boots last week on Nastygal.com, Facebook can see that I’ve visited that site, I’m female, and in the age range that Nastygal is targeting. Nastygal then pays Facebook so they will show me an ad for the exact boots I was looking at.
So although it may seem as if Google, Facebook, and many others are listening to your conversations, they’re really only tracking your digital footprint. This is still very creepy and arguably an invasion of privacy, but at least they can’t actually listen in to conversations.
https://www.outbrain.com/blog/programmatic-advertising/
Since the pandemic began, many people have been relying on streaming services and TV to keep themselves occupied while they are stuck in their homes. This being said, I think people have become more avid on what technology is watching them and how exactly they are doing it.
It truly is no surprise that our TVs have been watching our activity and catering advertisements to our common interests. Most TVs come with a setting that can be turned off in the event that you don’t want the TV to collect, store and sometimes even sell your data.
One of the best examples of this data storage is when I am watching Netflix and it stores what I have watched in the past so that it can tailor recommendations to things I might like in order to get me to watch more minutes on their streaming service. Additionally, on regular TV, it’s very easy to see that if I prevalently watch home goods shows, then home goods ads pop up on other networks when I watch something else.
Overall, I feel this is how TV and advertising companies make the majority of their money. If they are catering something to your likes and interests, it’s very easy for their targeted consumer to want to go out and buy whatever thing is being advertised. I think companies do state when they are storing your information in the Terms and Conditions section that no one takes the lengthy time to read. I’m not so much nervous with the company holding my information since it does help them in the long run and I know that the setting can be turned off with the click of a button.
https://www.consumerreports.org/video/view/electronics/televisions-streaming-media/5998318000001/smart-tvs-is-your-tv-watching-you/
The fact that TV and other forms of technology store your user information is not necessarily bad, in it of itself. Ideally, this would more or less only mean that when we inevitably get ads, they would be better directed for the specific user. This can be more convenient at times but can also be a breach of privacy and consumers should be made aware of the fact that this is happen.
If technology of any kind collects information on its users, it should inform the user before this happens. Only once the user consents to the collection should be begin. And if the user does not, then information should not be stored or the technology should not be able to be downloaded/purchased. Like if Facebook wanted to collect data, it should ask the user before being able to be download or it should be able to be turned off.
I personally do not have a huge issue with shopping data being collected about me, as long as it is just shopping data. If financial information or other kinds of personal info is being collected and sold then there are legal issues with that. The only thing I find a little odd is that a TV is the only collect this data rather than a phone or computer. But that’s mostly just because it’s new technology, I suppose.
As a customer first, the idea of my Tv collecting data is something i do not find unethical. The main purpose, besides trying to get the user to purchase more apps or movies, is to show more programs of our interest. According to Tammy Waitt, Smart TVs carry a feature called “a technology called automatic content recognition, or ACR.That viewing information can be combined with other consumer information and used for targeted advertising, not only on your TV but also on mobile phones and computers.” (American Security Today 1). If the programs recommended are tailored to my benefit it is something i will support.
Privacy is something that every person has a right to have, and without being told personal information is being used without consent is something I disagree with. If every company asked it’s user’s in an agreement to collect their personal data then I would have no issue. I side that it would not be approproite for companys to collect data without asking for customer approval. The Federal Trade Commision has stated that companies need your permission before collecting viewing data which is a good step for user privacy (American Security Today Paragraph 5). One issue with this rule is that users may be uneducated on how many different types of data is collected on them when they approve to a company agreement.
I would say I am not nervous about what companies are storing my information, mainly due to the fact there has been so many regulations and laws put in place to protect the user. I think many big privacy breaches like Facebook for example cause some reason for concern because user do not who is able to view their information.
https://americansecuritytoday.com/smart-tv-may-collecting-info-realize-video/