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

Is There Still Time For 2016 To Be The Year Of The Smart Home? Maybe

When it comes to predicting when the smart home will become a mainstream phenomenon, we’ve repeatedly missed the mark. Some of us have enjoyed the benefits—and dealt with the few headaches—of living i...

Ad Blocking Cost Industry USD 41 Bln In 2015

US broadband households watch an average of 3.8 hours of internet video on TV screens each week, accounting for 20 percent of all video viewed on this device, according to research by Parks Associates...

Google Home now has a screen — and, soon, Spotify

The small, candle-shaped speaker equipped with the artificial-intelligence personal helper Google Assistant, has sold about 300,000 units since hitting the market in October, according to research and...

Roku Adds Google Assistant and 2 New Players to Its Lineup

But it's obvious that Roku is feeling the heat from Amazon's aggressive push in the TV streaming (and smart TV) market. According to research from Parks Associates, Roku had the lead in streaming medi...

‹
1
2
...
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
...
719
720
›