In todays society, everyone is on the internet and using technology. It consumes our everyday lives and our world revolves around it. In this TED talk, Kashmir Hill speaks about how she was gifted a "smart speaker". According to a NPR survey, 1/6 adults own a smart speaker which is constantly listening to them! There are so many "smart" technologies and appliances available on the market today. Some examples are- smart lights, smart locks, smart toilets, and smart toys. All of these examples are able to connect to the internet, gather data, and talk to the owner.
Hill speaks about how she installed 18 smart devices in her home to the point where her house was almost a "smart home". She then had the other speaker, Surya Mattu, monitor everything the smart home did by installing a router that the devices were connected to. The two speakers wanted to see what information companies where able to see and even sell to others through the smart devices.
The experiment ran for two months. Over that time period there was never a period of "digital silence" in the house, even when Hill left her home for a week! Mattu was able to see when Hill and her husband turned on the TV (for how long and what they watched) and even when they brushed their teeth.
Scary enough, TV companies sell information to the government on what users watch then this information is sold to data brokers and advertisers. Personally, I believe that the most interesting point Hill brought up is the fact that even though you may purchase and own a smart device, the company who made the device now owns all the your data that it collects.
After watching this TED talk, I have gained a lot more information on privacy and how it relates to smart devices. My family does not own any smart devices besides our smart phones and for this I am a relieved! I am a quite private person and the idea of technology listening in on me, without my knowledge, is terrifying.
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