Internet of Toys

Think about the toys most children play with nowadays, how many of them are connected to the internet? How many of the games they play are from a connected device? How many of these games allow children to play with others they meet on the gaming platform?

You are probably scanning through all the toys and games in your household, wondering which ones are connected right now. Think about how many of them have required you to create an account associated with your child, potentially sharing the name, birthday, gender, and even more information? How many of them have requested a profile picture, camera access, microphone access? How many times did you click through long texts “accepting” terms?

I want to give you a straightforward example, and you know there are more grim stories on the internet if you look for it. I just want you to see that it is so easy to risk our children’s privacy, even with the best of intentions. In 2017, Lee Mathews covered the story of CloudPets leak – please read it.

Do you know what data is collected during the setup? What is being continuously collected during use, and what happens to it? What are their data-sharing practices, for operations or for-profit? Can you control any of the sharing?

It is not possible to avoid connected toys or devices altogether, for children’s entertainment or education. What is possible is, using them with caution. I want to give you some simple tips to keep in mind when purchasing, setting up, and using a connected toy or device.

• Read the privacy policy, look for answers to some of the questions I laid out above. Find out how the information is collected, used, shared, and what can you do about any of it? Are there settings you can limit the sharing of the data for profit or further marketing communications?
• Ask, does the device/toy need to be connected at all? Just because it can, doesn’t mean it has to be. After setup, does it have to stay connected?
• Consider powering off the devices every once in a while, or disconnect when not needed. If there is a software update offered, do not delay, update right away.
• If you have to create an account, avoid usernames and passwords that give away information like name, last names, birthdays, pet names, etc. Think about the times it would be okay to be less transparent with your child’s personally identifiable information? I am going to post separately about password and browser security tips, please look for it.
• Understand the extend of communication possible with others on the platform. Can they create and share information- in form of text, picture, video, or voice recording?
• Google. We google for all of our questions, then use Google to read about the product. Not to horrify yourself, but to inform yourself of the uses and the risks of such technology. Think about how someone could get around some of the factors you think you can control? Because kids will, intentionally or unintentionally.
• Talk about it with other parents. At school, at birthday parties, in group texts. You are always in touch with other parents about anything. Talk about this too, share thoughts, research, experience, and best practices. Spreading awareness is the best
• DO NOT PANIC. It is normal to be shocked with what you learn when you take the time to learn these things. Please do not overreact to your children, as a knee jerk reaction, while they are having fun with it. They are unaware of what you know and what you imagine. Remain calm and share what you learned, why it matters, and why you have to make some changes based on that information. It is very important that children understand where some of our decisions come from, so they can hopefully multiply the thinking in similar situations. It could be productive to explain how you will change some of your habits based on this situation too, so the children don’t feel that they are the only ones impacted.

To sum up, parents, please do not blindly buy, setup, click on a series of accepts, and not monitor what happens with the connected toys or games. Take your time to read about the products, and risks, privacy policies, and understand what data is generated, stored, shared, and do not give in if anything seems to be an excessive amount of sharing or permissions.