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July 3, 2019 | Stacey Gray
Under the radar of ongoing debates over the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), the California Senate Judiciary Committee will also soon be considering, at a July 9th hearing, an unusual sectoral privacy bill regulating “smart speakers.” AB-1395 would amend California’s existing laws to add new restrictions for “smart speaker devices,” defined as standalone devices “with […]
June 12, 2018 | Stacey Gray
In the world of consumer privacy, including the Internet of Things (IoT), mobile data, and advertising technologies (“Ad Tech”), it can often be difficult to measure real-world impact and conceptualize individual harms and benefits. Fortunately, academic researchers are increasingly focusing on these issues, leading to impressive scholarship from institutions such as the Princeton Center for Information Technology Policy (CITP), Carnegie Mellon University School of Computer Science, UC Berkeley School of Information, and many others, including non-profits and think tanks.
February 7, 2018 | Stacey Gray
Today, Consumer Reports released their initial findings on the privacy and security aspects of Smart TVs. Applying their Digital Standard (developed with Ranking Digital Rights and other partner organizations), Consumer Reports identified a range of important privacy aspects and potential security vulnerabilities in Smart TVs from five leading manufacturers (Sony, Samsung, LG, TCL, and Vizio).
February 1, 2018 | Stacey Gray
CES 2018 brought to light many exciting advancements in consumer technologies. Without a doubt, Smart TVs, Smart Homes, and voice assistants were dominant: LG has a TV that rolls up like a poster; Philips introduced a Google Assistant-enabled TV is designed for the kitchen; and Samsung revealed its new line of refrigerators, TVs, and other home devices powered by Bixby, their intelligent voice assistant.
November 15, 2017 | FPF Staff
“What data is being transmitted and what data is being used really depends on the device,” Verdi said. “They can offload that information from the device to servers on the internet that are either controlled by the companies or third parties and there’s some processing that can happen there.”
August 10, 2017 | Stacey Gray
Today, FPF released a new Infographic: Microphones & the Internet of Things: Understanding Uses of Audio Sensors in Connected Devices (read the Press Release here). From Amazon Echos to Smart TVs, we are seeing more home devices integrate microphones, often to provide a voice user interface powered by cloud-based speech recognition.
August 10, 2017 | FPF Staff
Washington, DC – Today, the Future of Privacy Forum released an infographic, “Microphones & the Internet of Things: Understanding Uses of Audio Sensors in Connected Devices.” In order to enable the benefits of new voice-based services while protecting data privacy, this infographic attempts to explain the range of possible uses of microphones in connected devices.
June 26, 2017 | Stacey Gray
May 1, 2017 | FPF Staff
FPF held the Second Annual Tech Lab Open House Tuesday, April 18, 2017, at our offices in Washington, D.C. The Tech Lab Open House provided an opportunity for us to host FPF members and colleagues based in the District of Columbia, and those from around the world who were in town for the International Association of Privacy Professional’s Global Privacy Summit.
February 10, 2017 | FPF Staff
FPF is pleased to welcome Henry Claypool as a senior fellow. Henry is currently Policy Director at the Community Living Policy Center at the University of California, San Francisco. He is the former Director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Disability and a founding Principal Deputy Administrator of the Administration for Community Living.