An investigation by the consumer group Which? has revealed that certain smart devices, such as air fryers and digital speakers, are engaged in excessive user surveillance. The tests focused on three popular brands of air fryers with British consumers that require permission to record audio through connected smartphone apps. The Xiaomi air fryer, in particular, was found to link to Facebook and TikTok trackers while also transmitting personal data to servers in China. Additionally, Which? highlighted concerns regarding smartwatches that demanded risky permissions, allowing extensive access to users' phones, including location tracking and audio recording. Meanwhile, the investigation also uncovered that digital speakers were preloaded with trackers from Facebook and Google, raising further privacy issues.
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