ADT Survey Reveals Strong Consumer Expectations for Smart Home Privacy Protections
January 27 2020 - 9:34AM
ADT (NYSE: ADT), a leading provider of security, automation, and
smart home solutions serving consumer and business customers in the
United States, today released key findings from a consumer privacy
survey* that reveals consumer sentiment on the topic. With many
data privacy and security issues in the news, it’s no surprise that
92 percent of respondents feel smart home security companies need
to take measures to protect customers’ personal data and
information. However, while concerns around privacy are high, more
than 40 percent of those surveyed admit they don’t feel
knowledgeable on the topic. The smart home security industry has
the opportunity to provide leadership and guidance in this area to
maintain consumer trust and promote responsible data privacy
practices within the industry.
“ADT released the first Internet-connected smart
home security platform in 2010, and we’ve consistently taken great
care to protect and connect our customers in the most secure ways
possible, using leading industry standards and best practices to
guard their data, privacy and personal information,” said Jim
DeVries, President and CEO of ADT. “Where there is consumer
confusion about privacy, we as an industry must work to reduce that
confusion so consumers can be confident that the products and
services we provide to help keep them safe can be trusted. With
that trust in place, there can be greater peace of mind.”
Key Consumer Privacy Opinion Survey
FindingsThe explosion of the smart home device category
ushered in scores of new manufacturers and brands that may have put
convenience before user privacy. However, the ADT consumer privacy
opinion survey revealed consumers are now aware of and concerned
about privacy as it relates to smart home devices with the top
concerns reported to be hacking (75%) followed by government spying
on in-home smart cameras (53%) and smart speakers (52%).
The survey also uncovered that when it comes to how
personal information is shared, consumers tend to be more concerned
about how governments (89%) and companies (93%) share their
personal information than they are about how they share their own
personal information on social media (86%). And, despite
acknowledging the importance of privacy protocols, most consumers
don’t use privacy measures available to them. In fact, fewer than
40% of survey respondents reported having any data privacy measures
in place at all.
“These consumer privacy opinion survey findings
validate the work we’ve been doing as an industry over the past
year to create a set of guiding principles, designed to help
protect customer privacy and trust in the security industry and
member companies, and to unify ourselves around them,” said Frank
Cona, Chief Privacy Officer at ADT.
A Consumer Privacy
Initiative for the Security IndustryLast year on Data
Privacy Day, ADT announced the Consumer Privacy Initiative, an
industry-level initiative to unite the smart home security industry
and produce clear guiding principles and best practices for how
security providers manage consumer data and protect their privacy.
Participants, including producers of security products and security
related software, implementers and other service providers, and
industry associations joined together during the past year to
develop a baseline of industry-wide guiding principles for consumer
privacy, with input from consumer advocates.
The guiding principles are being developed with the
understanding that providers of smart home security products and
services must continually earn the trust of their customers by
prioritizing their privacy as well as their safety. The principles
will evolve with the changing smart home and security
landscape—addressing top-of-mind issues such as facial recognition
and analytics. Current areas of focus include:
- Privacy by Design – Consumer privacy should be
embedded in all areas of the security industry, and that begins
with the design of the products used to help protect and connect
customers.
- Transparency – Providers of security products
and services must spell out in clear and understandable terms how
they collect, use, share, and retain sensitive data.
- Handling of Audio and Video – Security
providers will only share audio or video with first responders with
their customers’ prior consent, or as required by law, and will not
otherwise access a customer’s audio or video without the customer’s
knowledge.
- Data Correction and Deletion – Security
providers will create an easily accessible process for customers to
request that personal information collected by that provider be
deleted. Customers can also request that data errors be
corrected.
- Guidance and Use – Providers of security
products and services will equip customers with information that
empowers them to use their security products and services in a
manner that better enhances everyone’s privacy. This could involve
adjusting data collection settings, setup of cameras, or
establishing video and audio data retention timeframes that work
best for them.
- Accountability – Providers of security
products and services will commit to additional accountability
measures, such as independent privacy assessments.
The Consumer Privacy Initiative is an ongoing
effort. To date, the following organizations have collaborated in
developing the guiding principles, and we invite other
organizations to join in support of this effort:
- ADT, a leading provider of security,
automation, and smart home solutions serving consumer and business
customers in the United States.
- Alarm.com, the leading platform for the
intelligently connected property.
- Electronic Security Association, the largest
trade association in the United States representing the electronic
security and life safety industry.
- Security Industry Association (SIA), the
leading trade association for global security solution providers,
with more than 1,000 innovative member companies representing
thousands of security leaders and experts who shape the future of
the security industry.
- Sercomm, a leading manufacturer and supplier
of telecom equipment.
- TrustArc/Nymity, who provides solutions to
manage privacy compliance for the GDPR, CCPA and other global
privacy regulations.
- Vector Security, a premier provider of
intelligent security solutions tailored to the needs of the
customer.
*Survey conducted by YouGov of 1,230 U.S. Consumers
during December 2019.
About ADT Inc.ADT is a leading
provider of security, automation, and smart home solutions serving
consumer and business customers through more than 200 locations, 9
monitoring centers, and the largest network of security
professionals in the United States. The Company offers many ways to
help protect customers by delivering lifestyle-driven solutions via
professionally installed, do-it-yourself, mobile, and digital-based
offerings for residential, small business, and larger commercial
customers. For more information, please visit www.adt.com or follow
on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
ADT MEDIA RELATIONSPaul
Wiseman561-356-6388paulwiseman@adt.com
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