How Smart Toys Can Be Dangerous

The world has evolved, so much so that the kind of toys we played with as children are now outdated. The toys of today’s world are so advanced that some of them need a connection to the internet to fully function.

These toys are called “Smart Toys” and they are being bought worldwide. Smart toys use voice-recognition software, contain sensors, microphones, or cameras, or can be connected to the Internet. These features could put the privacy and safety of children at risk due to the large amount of personal information that may be unwittingly disclosed,

According to Fox News Radio, The FBI’s out with a warning about the increasingly popular smart toys on the market and they could be putting your children at risk. Today, more and more people are buying their children so-called smart toys that connect to the internet. However, FBI special agent Garret Croon says that they could also potentially expose your children to predators:

“Your children maybe speaking to the toys, or there could be background noise. Those audio recordings or video recordings are sent to a database somewhere in the sky which could be hacked by someone.” – Croon 

Safety Measures

1. parents should make certain the toys are only connected to the internet through secure Wi-Fi access points.
2. Read the privacy policies before letting your children use the toys, to make them as secure as possible.
3. Children should never be left unsupervised during playtime, an adult should always be present to monitor.
4. Children should be educated about the dangers of sharing information on these smart devices, anything shared has the potential of being intercepted.
5. Use a PIN or password when connecting to a Bluetooth device
6. Find out where the user data is stored (with the company, third party services, or both), and see if any public information is available on their reputation and cyber security. Carefully read disclosures and privacy policies.
7. Create a strong and unique login password when creating user accounts.
8.  Provide minimal information when inputting information for user accounts.