IoT toys are another innovation that children can enjoy nowadays, but are all new technologies adequately designed? FBI has issued an announcement, indicating that adults should pay attention to the safety of IoT toys that they have bought for their kids.
Security concerns have surfaced because of the fact that these new-ground toys could be manufactured with vulnerable features. They can secretively record a child via camera and microphone and show his/her geolocation throughout the day. Long story short, IoT toys could severely jeopardize your children’s privacy and if you are a parent, we recommend you not to neglect this news.
Toys that can keep close eye on your child and film his/her every move should be labeled. Nevertheless, we do not think that their vendors take enough time to warn their clients about these monitoring features. Since these clever merchandises can be connected to the Internet, it could be, that some hacking-techniques could be applied to invade not only a computer, but a seemingly-innocent toy. Thanks to this, a very serious crime could be committed when a child is closely-monitored and recorded by unknown parties.
This spying method could expose parents and children in numerous ways, depending on the activities that will be performed close to the IoT toy. Before parents purchase such a good, they are advised to properly consult with its creators and define all possible risks. A client should demand to know whether the company itself stores the recorded material and whether any of its partners receive this data. Children’s privacy is a very delicate thing and it should be properly protected. Therefore, it becomes evident that not all new technologies carry as much superiority as it would be expected of them.
Because of allegedly unsullied toys, children’s identity and safety could be put in jeopardy. Kidnapping is not a made-up issue: it is very serious and devastating. Who can say that a monitoring-item in a form of a toy won’t be exploited by criminals? If you value your younglings’ privacy and security, we advise you to seriously-consider that IoT tool might not be the best way to go. Since such toys are designed to connect to the Internet, some people can randomly connect to available WI-FI sources without knowing that their controllers will be allowed to spy on the device from that moment forward.
In case your son or daughter is currently playing with an IoT toy, you should do some research about the product’s security terms and whether the company provides explicit details about data-collection. If you have questions, contact the company’s support center or send them an email. In general, keep your IoT tools away from unknown WI-FI sources.
Source: infosecurity-magazine.com.
Read "FBI states that IoT toys pose as a threat to children and their privacy" in other languages
- El FBI dice que los juguetes IoT suponen una amenaza para los niños y su privacidad (es)
- Das FBI sagt aus, dass IoT Spielzeuge eine Gefahr für Kinder und deren Privatsphäre darstellen (de)
- FBI uttalar sig om att loT leksaker kan utgöra ett hot mot barn och deras privatliv (se)
- IoT ãŠã‚‚ã¡ã‚ƒãŒåä¾›ãŸã¡ã¨ãã®ãƒ—ライãƒã‚·ãƒ¼ã‚’è„…å¨ã«ã•ã‚‰ã™ã¨FBI ãŒè¦å‘Š (jp)
