That’s not the first time a big electronics company has refused to cooperate with the law on privacy grounds. You may recall that last year the FBI asked Apple to give it backdoor access to the San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone, and Apple refused. (The FBI was able to gain access to the phone’s data through other means.)
In the Arkansas case, the police ended up striking possible gold, not with the Echo but with Bates’s smart water meter. Its records revealed that someone used 140 gallons of water between 1 and 3 A.M. the night of the murder. Investigators doubt that Bates took a really long shower; instead they believe that he used the water to rinse away evidence on his patio.
These conflicts will only become more frequent. At this year’s enormous International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the hottest trend was Echo compatibility. An astonishing number of newly unveiled appliances can respond to commands you speak to your Echo: refrigerators, light switches, power strips, lamps, speakers, robotic vacuums, satellite boxes, TVs, security cameras, door locks, air purifiers, washers and dryers, cars, and on and on.
As we fill our homes with machines that are always listening or watching, clashes between electronic privacy and law enforcement will occur ever more frequently. “There are no laws that govern this,” Guffin says. “We haven’t enacted laws that deal with this burgeoning array: the movements in our house, what we’re putting in our refrigerators, how much energy we’re using, the conversations we might be having in our homes.” Dear lawmakers: The Internet of Listening Things is now upon us. Might be worth looking into.
