Lawmakers in Germany allege that smartwatches on the market today more closely resemble a spying device rather than a simple toy and they are urging parents to destroy the watches.
According to a recent report that was published by the Norwegian Consumer Council, there are some serious security flaws with the watches that could allow them to be hacked so that someone else can seize control. Along with that control would come a host of data about the wearer/owner of the device that is both historical and real-time.
These watches have been marketed to children who are between the ages of 5 to 12 years old and they offer a variety of functions for the wearer such as being able to check voicemail, make or receive calls, and more. They can also record a great deal of information about your daily habits, such as their school, their activities, name, and other data.
While parents might see the watches as a convenient way to try and keep track of their kids, it might actually be making them even more vulnerable; critics suggest that it could be easy for an attacker to also use that device to find and contact the children.
German lawmakers aren't the only ones that have raised the red flag over these smartwatches either, apparently the FBI has also suggested that they could endanger the privacy and safety of children.
Even worse, they claim that these toys are able to record and collect sensitive conversations that take place within earshot of the device and those with the device might not even know that such an action is taking place; that they are being spied on in this manner.
And this isn't the first time that lawmakers in Germany have raised concerns of children's toys on the market that they think might be improperly used for spying. Not that long ago they also instructed parents to destroy a doll that a telecoms regulatory body in the country deemed to be an illegal espionage apparatus.
Pics:
via techcrunch
via CoolWearables
pixabay
Sources:
https://gizmodo.com/german-regulators-ban-smartwatches-for-kids-urge-paren-1820551593
http://mashable.com/2017/11/17/german-regulator-tells-people-to-destroy-childrens-smartwatches/#VrzvIOAHeOq3
https://techcrunch.com/2017/10/19/consumer-report-warns-over-safety-of-kids-smartwatches/
https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/17/germany-bans-smartwatches-for-kids-over-spying-concerns/
https://www.politico.eu/article/german-parents-told-to-destroy-childs-doll-over-spying-fears/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/feb/17/german-parents-told-to-destroy-my-friend-cayla-doll-spy-on-children