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| 'Spy Central' (Photo by Jelson25) |
In addition to all her other assets (?), it seems that Barbie is now a spy.
This might seem commendable if she were spying on a threatening entity, but she is instead spying on trusting children.
These are children who have bared their souls to a doll that, up until recently, has never breathed a word. Although Barbie still doesn’t breathe (thank the Lord for favors such as this), she can now “talk.”
Lauren Walker of Newsweek
reports that Barbie has received a “digital makeover.” In other
words, she can now “have two-way conversations, play interactive games, tell stories and joke around.”
However, it’s no joke that when a child speaks to Barbie, “his or her words are sent to Toy Talk’s secure server.” These
captured confidences are then analyzed by corporate staffers, who utilize the ill-gained information to amass a “cloud-based database” of the child’s disclosures.
Although Toy Talk (Mattel's partner in this endeavor) alleges that parents have some control over these interactions, “Barbie’s ability to connect online has raised serious questions about the child’s
privacy.”
Repeat: Serious questions…
Resources
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/meet-hello-barbie-a-wi-fi-doll-that-talks-to-children/ar-BBhHrdd
Copyright February 18, 2015 by Linda Van Slyke All Rights Reserved
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