Livestream: Pitfalls of fine print in apps, devices

If you have ever wondered about the implications of all the terms and conditions listed on the screens of every new electronic device – be it a smartphone or a tablet or a pc or even the latest dating app, Myrstad’s Ted Talk can be considered as essential viewing for millennials and above. 

He brings into relief the case of Cayla, an Internet enabled, Bluetooth powered doll that became extremely popular in Germany thanks to its voice recognition features and its AI enabled speech faculties. What the creators hadn’t realised was that the doll offered anyone within a radius of 60 feet, complete access to the doll’s speech capabilities, using which one could even make phone calls through the doll and instruct the user (in this case, children) to carry out whatever he or she demands. Of course, Cayla was packed off to a spy museum but not before raking up a debate on fine print across the board on apps and products.

Myrstad also touches upon the implicit permissions we grant to popular dating apps that mine our photographs and chat histories from Facebook, with agreements authorising them to use such data in any means necessary. It’s a cautionary tale and one that demands greater examination from the State and the industry.