AI Toys are Endangering Kids

As I am sure you have noticed or heard about, our devices are spying on us. When I use the word "us," most will gravitate to the idea of teenagers and adults, but we are forgetting about the kids. For my long read, I was assigned the article "Smart talking: are our devices threatening our privacy?" by James Vlahos, which highlighted how our audio recordings and transcribed records are being involuntarily saved, along with how children are being targeted through their smart toys. However, with new modern advancements, should children's toys have artificially intelligent features since both the toys and the kids are the most perceptible to hackers?  

Modern childhood toys today, such as teddy bears and barbies, have been modified with artificial intelligence and Bluetooth features like most of the technology today. However, these toys are being taken advantage of by hackers. In 2017 CloudPets were a sensation teddy bear that allowed voice messages to be sent in real time no matter where the correspondent was in the world. It sounds almost magical, and it was until hackers quickly realized they could hack into the bear's unsecured network and steal user information and data. Users' personal information became available to thousands of hackers in a matter of months. You can quickly see how disastrous that became. 

Kids' toys as a whole are significantly less protected than our precious devices, making it easier than ever for corruption. Hackers have figured out ways to access childrens' toys from the street right outside their home. If this is not concerning to you, they can even speak to the kids through the toy. Kids being as innocent as they are, have a great chance of sharing personal information that puts them at risk, along with their family. So, should that $60 dollar toy that asks "funny" questions be on the shelves?