On April 18, 2017, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) released tips for ensuring privacy while using wearable technologies, such as fitness trackers.
Wearable technologies have raised privacy concerns as they collect data in real time about a user’s day-to-day activities, choices, and environment. This data may be used in unexpected ways, such as shared with third parties or posted on the internet.
As a result, the OPC offered the following tips to users:
- Read the privacy information before you buy
- Know what data will be collected and how it will be used or shared
- Choose strong privacy settings
- Strong privacy settings ensure less data collected and result in less data shared with third parties
- Use a password
- If the device is linked to a smart phone or other device, use strong passwords that are different from other website passwords
- Turn off your device
- Turning off your device when it is not in use will limit the amount of data collected
- Accept updates
- Updates ensure you have the latest security features
- Respect the privacy of others
- Consider how the data collected can affect others around you and seek permission before using it
- Ensure old devices are wiped of personal information
- Before discarding an old device, check with the manufacturer to ensure you know how to permanently remove all collected data
More information can be found here.
Summary By: Suzie Suliman