In an age of increasing technology, we all know that complete privacy has become less and less of a reality. From webcams to the Cloud to the NSA, people like to concern themselves with fears about who could be spying (but then proceed to share their life stories on every form of social media).
Imagine if it weren’t the government or a scary terrorist organization spying on you, but your own spouse. That’s what happened to a woman a few months ago.
In January, Catherine Higginson wrote an article for Mirror about how she discovered that her husband had been secretly spying on her through an app called “Ceberus: Private Data Protected.” According to Mirror, the app allows him to “track her movements, read her texts and even listen to her conversations.” Initially, Higginson had a negative reaction, but said that in the end, she had no issues with the app because she has nothing to hide.
Whether or not she has issue with it, why does her husband feel the need to track her every move?
It seems that social media and this type of technology has created a new type of distrust for those around us. If someone likes a picture, follows a new account or even has a conversation with someone new, it can immediately be considered suspicious.
Granted, it’s not like spouses should have anything to hide from each other. However, they should also have a level of trust that doesn’t require extreme stalking. What are you supposed to talk about after work in the evening if you already know everything the other person did that day?
But apps aren’t the only way people are concerned about privacy. According to World Magazine, Mattel is set to release a “smart” Barbie doll in the fall that will record the user’s voice and “transmit the recordings over the Internet to cloud servers.” The goal of this recording system is for the doll to have a “unique relationship with each girl.”
As a kid, I probably would have thought this was just about the best thing ever. But of course someone has to be against the toy. A child privacy advocacy group, Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, does not want the toy released because they think the doll is “creepy.”
Quite frankly, I’m not quite sure what information recorded from a 5-year-old talking to a doll could be useful to anyone. Additionally, if a person is so against his or her child’s voice being recorded, then just don’t buy the doll. There are plenty of other toy options, and it’s not worth campaigning against a company over a kid’s toy.
Yes, privacy is a concern. But much of the time it is up to a person whether or not one puts himself or herself out there in the public eye.
Just don’t use social media, don’t buy the doll with the recording device and don’t use the tracking app if you’re that concerned about who knows what you’re doing and what you’re saying.
