Privacy, Once Hidden Topic, Gets Attention At CES Tech Show

Once a hidden and under-the-radar topic, privacy got more attention at the CES gadget show in Las Vegas last week.

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Startups now volunteer information about how they’re securing your data and protecting your privacy when you use their heart rate monitor or cuddly robot.

Roybi, an alien-looking robot that teaches kids languages and other skills, has a camera with facial recognition that can remember children and guess whether the kid was excited or sad after a lesson. Roybi says it uses that information to make changes to its lessons.

But the $199 robot also comes with a sticker, so parents can block the camera if they want.

“We want to make sure we give people choices,” said CEO and founder Elnaz Sarraf, who said parents questioned the lens. “When it comes to children, people are more sensitive.”

Caregiver Smart Solutions, which makes products for caregivers to track the elderly remotely, decided to do away with cameras, declaring them too intrusive. The company opted instead for small sensors that monitor when doors are opened and closed.

After two years of tech companies facing the reckoning of rising privacy concerns, the message seems to be setting in: The way you use customers’ information can no longer be ignored.

Last Friday was the final day of the annual CES technology conference in Las Vegas, a forum for companies to unveil their products and services for the coming year.

Among other highlights this week:

A SCREEN THAT’S ALL ABOUT YOU