People willing to sell personal data for money, new study

Smart homes will be as common worldwide as smartphones are today, and consumers will give away private data on internet-powered home devices in exchange for discount coupons or cash, a new study has found.

According to a recent survey conducted by Intel Security International, more than half (54%) of respondents said they would be willing to share their personal data collected from their smart home with companies, in exchange for money.

Yet ironically, survey respondents were universally worried about potential security threats from smart homes, with 92% expressing concern that their personal data could be hacked by cybercriminals.

But when it comes too companies with authorization, they’re ok with it: 70% said they feel companies should provide coupons and discounts to customers in return for them providing data about device usage.

Seventy-seven per cent of respondents believe smart homes will be as common in 2025 as smartphones are today, but 66% are also very concerned about smart home data being hacked by cybercriminals.

The Internet of Things and the Smart Home survey polled 9,000 individuals from nine countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Mexico, the United Kingdom and the United States.

“Smart homes and their associated data have the potential to improve consumers’ everyday lives,” says Steve Grobman, Chief Technology Officer for Intel Security. “The survey shows that many individuals would be comfortable sharing that data for a price, but they are still understandably concerned about cyberthreats. Security has to be foundational to the Internet of Things and when done right, it can be an enabler of IoT.”

Of the respondents, 89% said that if they lived in a smart home, they would likely prefer to secure all their smart devices through a single integrated security package.

Consumers were less enthusiastic about existing security methods such as passwords, with four in 10 foreseeing passwords as a frustration with smart homes, and three-quarters (75%) indicating they are at least somewhat anxious about the number of passwords likely to be required to manage smart homes. Instead, biometrics scored well as an alternative for accessing smart homes. When asked to select several preferred forms of biometric security, 54% opted for fingerprints, 46% for voice recognition and 42% for eye scans.

With Canadians specifically, 71% of respondents believe companies should give coupons and discounts to customers in return for sharing data related to usage, on par with 70% globally. Fifty-five per cent of respondents said if they lived in a smart home they would give a company access to their connected home habits if they were paid (versus 60% globally). And 81% of respondents north of the border said if they had a smart home, they would only want a single sign-on to manage the entire home – that’s slightly less than 84% globally.

The Internet of Things and the Smart Home survey was conducted in July 2015 by Vanson Bourne, an independent market research provider specializing in the technology sector. A total of 9,000 consumers were interviewed globally, including 2,500 from the United States, 1,000 from the United Kingdom, 1,000 from France, 1,000 from Germany, 1,000 from Brazil, 1,000 from India, 500 from Canada, 500 from Mexico and 500 from Australia.

Agencies/Canadajournal