Eyesee You And The Internet Of Things: Watching You While You

In a new age of technological advancement, companies are abusing the power granted to them by access to new inventions, and in doing so are invading the privacy of their consumers. Hidden cameras, data mining, and radio frequency information devices (RFIDs) are all used to track the daily life of consumers, and marketing revolves around this data. While many will argue that people should be aware of all tracking technology, and avoid it if they don’t wish to be tracked, due to the prevalence of this technology in society, this is an unreasonable expectation for people. Tracking techniques used by companies should be limited to information that anyone can see, privacy is a human right granted by the laws of our nation, and it must be protected.

In his article, “EyeSee You and the Internet of Things: Watching You While You Shop,” John Whitehead stated, “For store-owners who want to know-a lot more-about their customers, [EyeSee mannequins are] the perfect tool.” (Whitehead 11-13). EyeSee mannequins, mannequins with cameras for eyes, use facial recognition technology to evaluate customers. They are the perfect tool because they are such a normal part of shopping that nobody calls to question the true intentions of the shopkeeper in keeping them all over. They sit there, innocently recording every action and taking data on every customer. While this may seem a little bit creepy, as it is information obtainable by basic human observation, I do not view it to be an invasion of privacy, simply a way that shopkeepers can improve the experience of

RFID technology allows companies to track the movements of any items. Serena Stein, author of article, “Where Will Consumers Find Privacy Protection From RFIDs? A case for Federal Legislation,” described RFIDs as “wireless barcodes” (Stein 5-6). RFIDs emit unique radio frequencies that allow companies to track their location at all times. Again, considering what a normal person would observe in public, RFIDs are okay in some circumstances. For instance, it’s alright for a company to track the sweatshirt I’m wearing when I’m at school, any person could observe that. However, it isn’t okay to track the t-shirt I wear underneath, unless I am to remove the sweatshirt. Nor is okay to track the t-shirt or sweatshirt when I am on private property. However, RFIDs have no way of separating what is private and what is public and what is private information, and thus the use of them risks wrongful invasion of