In Mark Andrejevic’s Estranged Free Labor he discusses the use of business models that
rely on consumers willing submitting to increasingly detailed and comprehensive
forms of monitoring. These forms of monitoring often lead to the collection and
use of “big data” which many online companies like Amazon rely on to
effectively target specific demographic and psychographic groups for marketing
purposes. The growth of technology allows growth of this “mediated culture” in
which information is willing shared, and then used by companies. As our
interactive economy relies on the capturing of this value that is generated by
users this article shows how people are building the economic value of
something without being paid for the data the company is receiving.
When I saw the recent introduction of Hello Barbie, I was reminded of the
idea of Andrejevic’s free labor and how this new Barbie has brought up
questions about the risk to our privacy with these forms of monitoring. Hello
Barbie is an interactive Barbie that is Wi-Fi enabled and is capable of
listening to a child and responding. It connects via Wi-Fi and is able to store
information about the child and then send that information off to third parties
for processing. After looking into it more, I came across an article discussing
the hacking risks associated with a Wi-Fi enabled children’s toy. As discussed by Andrejevic, and the article,
there is a substantial risk to our privacy with this type of technology that is
meant to capture and generate data information for commodification. Not only is the information being processed
by the company used for betterment of the product, but also the doll is extremely
vulnerable to hacking. Not only is the company using children’s conversations for
analysis, but there is a risk of hackers accessing this information as well.
Do you think there should be laws in place
to protect users, especially children from having their data and privacy exploited?
On top of that should this technology be allowed when the risk of hacking is so
high?
I definitely think there should be laws, or some kind of regulation, in place for technologies which are directed at children. It can be disturbing how children can be targeted in cyber spaces, as was exemplified by the Anonymous hack of habbo hotel. I think it's especially important as children are incapable of thinking critically; it's likely that children could be manipulated by their barbies to share confidential information. This could definitely be a dangerous technology.
ReplyDeleteHello Barbie is nothing short of an invasion of privacy and downright creepy! I also saw this commercial of it and immediately thought the company might as well be giving them out for free for the amount of information they will have access to. I do not think this device should exists especially as a children's toy. Children are easily influential and we as adults have to ensure we are regulating and Markwick's idea of self-monitoring online, but children may not be implying the same regulations of their actions. Not only can it record children but it can record that their parents or peers are saying. I definitely agree with Alannah this needs regulation or for parents and children to understand the dangers of this.
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