Many smart devices are spying on you

[Renegade]

Smart devices?

http://fusion.net/story/49352/all-the-smart-gadgets-are-spying-on-you/

It’s not just Samsung TVs — lots of other gadgets are spying on you

Earlier this month, Samsung was the target of a privacy dust-up due to a disturbing sentence in the privacy policy for its smart TVs: “Please be aware that if your spoken words include personal or other sensitive information, that information will be among the data captured and transmitted to a third party.”

And a long list of more devices that are spying on you at the link.

Theme song to accompany article:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMVV_HsHcX0

You think you've private lives
Think nothing of the kind
There is no true escape
I'm watching all the time

And art becomes reality...

[IainB]

Probably nothing surprising in the above. It's a fact of life.
It has long been known that Open systems are great except that the only really secure system is a closed one that is not connected to anything else.
Personally, the only devices I would recommend connecting to the Internet are PCs, and even then I'd suggest people ensure that the audio/video functionality is locked down (defeated) except when you want it on, and that you monitor which devices and MAC addresses are accessing the wifi or other modem/router. Whilst monitoring traffic, I once spotted what looked suspiciously like a router device emulation software sparking into brief life and then shutting down and becoming invisible. I took a snapshot of the Windows Explorer device window that it appeared in but could find little information about it on the web except that it seemed to come from a certain manufacturer.

I suspect that, post-Snowdengate, we can probably take it as read that, regardless of any protestations to the contrary, Big Corporates and Big Brother are shamelessly in cahoots and able to and will utilise all available technology to monitor all phone traffic, VOIP traffic, P2P traffic and email accounts and trading accounts (e.g., Amazon).
The terms "Privacy", "Confidentiality" and "Security" seem to have become somewhat meaningless, if not a joke.

[bit]

More DC-type apps to update the firmware and shut down the spyware?

[anandcoral]

I think it is high time that we understand that we are 'open source' now.

No matter where you are and what you are doing, you are being watched, and we all know it.

1. Wake up and take a walk, you are watched by the satellite and cctv on street and parks, and obviously monitored by your mobile ISP towers.
2. Visit ATM and withdraw cash, yes your face and time with the amount of money is recorded.
3. Switch on tv for morning news and you are recorded by your cable / disk tv provider the channels you are watching and how long. If you have smart tv, then you hand movement and voice control are also recorded.
4. Go to office and your smart card for train / bus is marked for time and place of your journey.
5. Your office marks you at the gate itself from your id card and the duration you are there.

Till now you haven't started your computer but still all your existences has being recorded.

We have smart devices all around us, which are listening, marking, watching and recording us. They know even more than our parents / spouses.

Just keep the towel on.

Regards,

Anand