Are the Police Using Smart-Home IoT Devices to Spy on People?
IoT devices are surveillance devices, and manufacturers generally use them to collect data on their customers. Surveillance is still the business model of the Internet, and this data is used against the customers’ interests: either by the device manufacturer or by some third party the manufacturer sells the data to. Of course, this data can be used by the police as well; the purpose depends on the country.
None of this is new, and much of it was discussed in my book Data and Goliath. What is common is for Internet companies is to publish “transparency reports” that give at least general information about how police are using that data. IoT companies don’t publish those reports.
TechCrunch asked a bunch of companies about this, and basically found that no one is talking.
Boing Boing post.
Clive Robinson • October 22, 2018 9:11 AM
@ Bruce,
Short answer “Yes if they can”.
Long answer, they will if they can get access and won’t get into much trouble if they can.
They will take the same attitude as Government and Corporate entities. With the currebt ceop of legislators looking like they will give various LEO’s access to Gov data and be able to buy Corp data.
If they don’t get access either of those ways, and as the legislators will not stop them, then it will have to be the judiciary in some way. But I’m not holding my breath on that, Cops in the US kill by gun and taser without any signs of remorse and get backed to the hilt by people who should know better.
So I can not see them being even remotely worried by the judiciary in criminal cases. Which suggests civil cases and take large chunks of money away from them till some one tells them enough is enough.