Episode 96 - We Are Being Watched, Recorded, and Targeted by “Things”

Data privacy and the laws that protect our personal information mostly deal with digital data and data equipment like computers and smartphones. But the Internet of Things – IoT – is meeting data infrastructure (listen to Episode 90 about the Edge for more on that). Things we don’t think of as data collectors collect our personal information and share it with others, often without our notice or consent, and sometimes in ways we do not want. Is the law ready to deal with this? Daniel Murray, an intellectual property and technology transactions attorney at Frost Brown Todd LLC join the Detective in exploring the issues. With a mishmash of state and federal rules, the U.S. lacks a comprehensive data privacy code. International laws differ greatly, some granting control to individuals over their personal data and others giving central government authorities almost total control over personal data about residents. As IoT devices, including automobiles and home furnishings, watch and record us and our visitors, the challenges to protecting privacy proliferate, and existing rules may not apply. This podcast discusses the challenges to data privacy in the IoT world, issues including interoperability, inadvertent and unconsented collection, and other questions of modern life and the future of personal data privacy. If you have ideas for more interviews or stories, please email [email protected].