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

Voice Control for Connected Entertainment: Challenges and Opportunities

Smart speakers are becoming a more common platform for controlling connected entertainment due to a rapid increase in popularity and ease of use. Household penetration of smart speakers is expected to...

Consumers Balk at Premium Smartphone Prices

"Parks Associates consumer survey data finds that between 2014 and 2018, the average amount paid by U.S. broadband households on their most recently purchased smartphone doubled from a mean of $258 to...

AR in Harry Potter Game Is Next Best Thing to Real Magic

"Since Pokémon Go first launched in 2016, we've seen a number of other AR games launch as well," said Kristen Hanich, senior analyst at Parks Associates. However, none have risen to the same level...

AI Meets VR in New Nvidia Tech

"Currently, VR content creation is prohibitively costly, and it is difficult to create the kinds of experiences consumers are looking for," explained Kristen Hanich, a research analyst with Dallas, Te...

‹
1
2
...
527
528
529
530
531
532
533
...
745
746
›