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Smart technology has made operating your home gadgets easier than ever, but that has seemingly come at a cost as experts reveal how certain items could be spying on you without your knowledge.
It should almost be an expectation at this point that your most-used gadgets are keeping track of what you do, yet your personal data can be found in other valuable ways you might not expect.
One of the biggest methods that might shock you relates to smart air fryers and toasters, which the Information Commissioner's Officer (ICO) – an independent regulator in the UK – has revealed could be spying on you and harvesting your personal data.
Data suggests that at least 89 per cent of households in the United States own at least one toaster, as per Industry Research, with roughly two-thirds having an air fryer in their kitchen following rapid adoption across the last decade.
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While not all of these fill feature smart features, many of the cheaper models will surprisingly recommend – or perhaps even require – people to connect the device to their phones, which opens up the door to further issues.
Experts have indicated that air fryers that specifically ask to be connected to the internet could be viewing your exact location, alongside instances where some are even recording audio through your phone without your knowledge.
As per the Daily Mail, research carried out by consumer champion Which? discovered that some of this data is being sent to servers in China without a proper explanation, so it might make you think twice about your buying habits going forward.
One of the biggest risks most people are exposed to, however, is linked to smart TVs — as while it might not seem as malicious or dangerous at face value, it can actually expose a lot about your habits and interests.
Smart TVs are able to not only analyse what you what but when you watch it too, building a profile of your interests which can then be used to serve you personalized adverts.
Politicians have called for greater restrictions on the data that smart gadgets can collect, but for the time being it's somewhat up in the air, causing the burden to be placed on individuals who need to think more about the safety of the products they're buying.
Opting for devices that don't require an internet connection to function is a great first step — as is decoupling any connections from other devices like your phone, no matter how inconvenient that can make the process of using the gadget.
