• Latest
  • Trending
  • All
  • News
  • Business
  • Lifestyle

Your ‘Air Fryer Is Spying’ on You, Warns Ted Cruz in Introducing Bipartisan Smart Tech Consumer Privacy Bill

July 19, 2023
Trump DOJ Steps Into Breach To Defend Religious Liberty

Trump DOJ Steps Into Breach To Defend Religious Liberty

May 11, 2025
‘Substantial Progress’ Made With China In Key Trade Talks, Bessent Says

‘Substantial Progress’ Made With China In Key Trade Talks, Bessent Says

May 11, 2025
LAUREN DEBELLIS APPELL: No, Don’t Send Women Back To The Kitchen

LAUREN DEBELLIS APPELL: No, Don’t Send Women Back To The Kitchen

May 11, 2025
STEVE MILLOY: ‘All Of The Above’ Is DEI For Energy

STEVE MILLOY: ‘All Of The Above’ Is DEI For Energy

May 11, 2025
HILLARY BRIGHT AND HEATHER REAMS: Trump Should Embrace Offshore Wind

HILLARY BRIGHT AND HEATHER REAMS: Trump Should Embrace Offshore Wind

May 11, 2025
‘Vitally Important’: Orgs Suing For Biden-DOJ Interview Recording Explain What’s At Stake

‘Vitally Important’: Orgs Suing For Biden-DOJ Interview Recording Explain What’s At Stake

May 11, 2025
Sen. Ruben Gallego Boasts About Using Filibuster To Block Trump Agenda After Campaigning To Abolish It

Sen. Ruben Gallego Boasts About Using Filibuster To Block Trump Agenda After Campaigning To Abolish It

May 10, 2025
REPS LISA MCCLAIN, JULIE FEDORCHAK And PATRICE ONWUKA: Women Know The Value Of Tax Cuts To Our Economy

REPS LISA MCCLAIN, JULIE FEDORCHAK And PATRICE ONWUKA: Women Know The Value Of Tax Cuts To Our Economy

May 10, 2025
Dem Senate Candidates Running In ‘Toss-Up’ States Co-Sponsor Bill To Eliminate Women’s Sports

Dem Senate Candidates Running In ‘Toss-Up’ States Co-Sponsor Bill To Eliminate Women’s Sports

May 10, 2025
‘Paying Far More Attention’: Rubio Turns His Gaze To America’s Backyard After Years Of Neglect From Washington

‘Paying Far More Attention’: Rubio Turns His Gaze To America’s Backyard After Years Of Neglect From Washington

May 10, 2025
‘Team That Refuses To Win’: Marjorie Taylor Greene Blasts GOP Elites While Passing On Georgia Senate Run

‘Team That Refuses To Win’: Marjorie Taylor Greene Blasts GOP Elites While Passing On Georgia Senate Run

May 10, 2025
Cops Without Citizenship: New Mexico Law Opens Police Force To Non-Citizens

Cops Without Citizenship: New Mexico Law Opens Police Force To Non-Citizens

May 10, 2025
  • Donald Trump
  • State of the Union
  • Elon Musk
  • Tariffs
  • Congress
  • Faith
  • Immigration
Sunday, May 11, 2025
  • Login
IJR
  • Politics
  • US News
  • Commentary
  • World News
  • Faith
  • Latest Polls
No Result
View All Result
IJR
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Your ‘Air Fryer Is Spying’ on You, Warns Ted Cruz in Introducing Bipartisan Smart Tech Consumer Privacy Bill

by Western Journal
July 19, 2023 at 4:22 pm
in News
247 5
0

US Sen. Ted Cruz R-TX, asks questions to Mr. Steve Satterfield, Vice President, Privacy & Public Policy, Facebook, Inc. as he testifies during a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights, at the US Capitol in Washington, DC on September 21, 2021. - The hearing is titled Big Data, Big Questions: Implications for Competition and Consumers. (Photo by Ken Cedeno / various sources / AFP) (KEN CEDENO/Getty Images)

491
SHARES
1.4k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Last week, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas tried to get support for a bill that would inform consumers if an appliance has the potential to monitor them, in what he calls a way to stop Big Tech from spying on the little guy.

Senate Commerce Committee Ranking Member Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington are today supporting the Informing Consumers about Smart Devices Act, which cleared the Senate Commerce Committee in March, according to the U.K. Daily Mail, which noted it has already been approved in the House.

Last week, Cruz wanted the bill to be given unanimous consent so it could move to the White House for President Joe Biden’s signature, but Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky objected on the grounds that good intentions do not necessarily mean good legislation.

The risk of an appliance knowing more about your habits than you do is not some bureaucratic fancy. Bob Vila’s website recently noted that even your smart refrigerator can be misused.

“If you consider that companies want to know all about what you’re buying and using on a day-to-day basis, then a smart refrigerator with an internal camera looking at what you have inside offers a treasure trove of data. Your smart fridge may also be monitoring family conversations that take place while you’re cooking breakfast,” the website noted.

What gets put online is open to stealing. As noted by Microsoft, Chinese hackers are already hard at work stealing data.

Cruz began his speech in favor of his bill by noting how the reality of his life as an adult is copying the cartoons he watched as a child.

“Many Americans remember waking up on Saturday morning to watch their favorite cartoons, including shows like The Jetsons. As I look at the Senate pages that were here, I suspect none of you have any memory of the Jetsons. For those who are under 40, in the chamber or watching at home, the Jetsons was a futuristic cartoon set in the year 2062. And it depicted a family from the future who had fun, imaginative technologies like jetpacks, holograms, video calls,  robot vacuums, smartwatches, and flying cars. While we’re still waiting to see those flying cars in the air, we already have a lot of the Jetsons technology available to us now, in many cases even better than what was depicted in cartoon on the show,” Cruz said, according to the Commerce committee’s website.

“Today, internet-connected smart devices are commonly used in American households, light bulbs, mirrors, air fryers, coffeemakers, trash cans, kitchen faucets, refrigerators, and more are all becoming quote unquote, smart. And we’re able to control them with our phones or voice commands. A lot of that is really cool,” he said.

Cruz said the tradeoff is that “a lot of Americans don’t realize or expect that the growing number of smart household devices and appliances, have cameras on them, and microphones that can surreptitiously record families and transmit data.”

Do you support Ted Cruz’s consumer smart tech privacy bill?

Completing this poll entitles you to our news updates free of charge. You may opt out at anytime. You also agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Yes: 100% (25 Votes)
No: 0% (0 Votes)

“In other words, when you’re buying a new refrigerator, you don’t expect your fridge to record you, or listen to you, or spy on you without your knowledge,” he said.

“Now, I’m sympathetic to the argument that there are too many mandates from government and that many of the mandates are unnecessary,  burdensome, and costly. But requiring a manufacturer to tell you if they’re spying on you does not fall into that category,” he said.

Cruz continued, “I don’t think the American people want their air fryer spying on them. And at a minimum, they have a right to know if their air fryer is spying on them.”

However, Paul said he sticks to his guns that consumers should be the ones demanding change, not the government.

“Far too often Congress operates under the delusion that we know what is best for the American consumer,” he said, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

“This bill mandates what manufacturers must tell consumers because it assumes that consumers are not sophisticated enough to make the judgment themselves,” Paul said.

“If American consumers want more information about a product, they can be sure they will make it known. If a manufacturer wants to sell more of their products, you can be sure they will listen to the consumers,” he said.

This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.

Tags: Big GovernmentBig TechRand PaultechnologyTed Cruz
Do you support Ted Cruz’s consumer smart tech privacy bill?

Completing this poll entitles you to our news updates free of charge. You may opt out at anytime. You also agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Yes: 100% (25 Votes)
No: 0% (0 Votes)
Share196Tweet123
Western Journal

Western Journal

Advertisements

Top Stories June 10th
Top Stories June 7th
Top Stories June 6th
Top Stories June 3rd
Top Stories May 30th
Top Stories May 29th
Top Stories May 24th
Top Stories May 23rd
Top Stories May 21st
Top Stories May 17th

Join Over 6M Subscribers

We’re organizing an online community to elevate trusted voices on all sides so that you can be fully informed.





IJR

    Copyright © 2024 IJR

Trusted Voices On All Sides

  • About Us
  • GDPR Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • Editorial Standards & Corrections Policy
  • Subscribe to IJR

Follow Us

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Politics
  • US News
  • Commentary
  • World News
  • Faith
  • Latest Polls

    Copyright © 2024 IJR

Top Stories June 10th Top Stories June 7th Top Stories June 6th Top Stories June 3rd Top Stories May 30th Top Stories May 29th Top Stories May 24th Top Stories May 23rd Top Stories May 21st Top Stories May 17th