Register

I agree with the Privacy Policy

In The News

Survey: Consumers Prefer Keeping Wearable Device Data from Insurers

August 17, 2015

remote health monitoring

connected health devices

fitness tracker

According to research firm Parks Associates, the majority of those surveyed indicated that they are not willing to share data collected from wearable devices, even if it meant receiving a discount on their health insurance premiums. In spite of this reluctance, these same consumers were willing to share data for the purpose of troubleshooting the devices themselves.

The results of the survey varied significantly by device. Forty-two percent of digital pedometer owners were willing to share data in order to receive a health insurance discount; for smartwatch owners the total was 35 percent; and for sleep-quality monitor owners it was 26 percent. Nevertheless, a solid majority of device owners was not willing to share data.

Consumers are justified in their concerns about health data privacy. The Los Angeles Times told in July of a security breach in October 2014 where hackers compromised UCLA Health Systems’ computer network, putting 4.5 million patients’ sensitive data at risk. What was troubling about the incident was that it took nearly seven months from the time suspicious activity was discovered in October, to May 5, which is when investigators determined the system was hacked. Additionally troubling was that the data was not even encrypted.

From the article "Survey: Consumers Prefer Keeping Wearable Device Data from Insurers" by Christopher Mohr.

Previously In The News

Streamer eyes yardage as 68% of US households watch NFL

The extent of the opportunity for the soon to be announced NFL+ app, which opens the possibility that all games in America’s most popular sport, could be streamed direct-to-consumer, has been revealed...

Stat Firm Reports Less Than 1% of Subscribers Playing Netflix Games

“Netflix should continue to be vigilant and observant of consumer response as it builds out its still-nascent games portfolio, but I don’t believe it should be overly concerned,” said Parks Associates...

E-Sports Pioneers Are Making It Up as They Go

Another reason e-sports has strong growth potential is that, unlike many other sports, whose fans may only be spectators, e-sports attracts video gamers, many of whom could become e-sports competitors...

Nvidia's Turing Chip Opens Door to New Virtual Reality Realm

However, access for consumers likely is years away, according to Brett L. Sappington, senior director of research at Parks Associates, a market research and consulting company in Addison, Texas. "T...

‹
1
2
...
500
501
502
503
504
505
506
...
732
733
›