- Personal data handed over to cyber sex toy makers could be stolen by hackers
- This is according to an expert speaking at a cyber sex conference in London
- Agreeing to terms and conditions without reading them could leave users at risk
- One connected sex toy firm is already been sued over claims it was keeping tabs on intimate data
Sex robots could be a target for hackers who want to get access to details of your sexual perversions.
That’s according to Dr Kate Devlin who made the warning during a talk at the ‘Love and Sex with Robots’ conference in London this week.
She says that connected sex toys could store incredibly personal data, raising concerns over how it could be used in future.
One expert has warned that these connected sex toys, including sex robots, could store incredibly personal data, raising concerns over how it could be used in future.
‘Right now my big concern is about data,’ said Dr Kate Devlin, from the Department of Computing at Goldsmiths, University of London.
With people often ticking the boxes to agree with terms and conditions without even reading them, the consequences could be huge.
But it depends on how any saved data is used, explained Dr Devlin.
Dr Devlin admitted data collected by some intimate connected gadgets could be useful for improving the product or for helping.
‘But do we want people to know when we have sex and how we have sex?’ Dr Devlin asked.
She referred to a case in which a woman sued sex toy firm Standard Innovation, makers of the WeVibe, earlier this year – claiming the company was keeping tabs on intimate data collected by the smart dildo and its corresponding app.
The case highlights the potential pitfalls of handing over such intimate data.
Dr Devlin also raised concerns the current designs of sex robots encourage the objectification of women.
‘Women are massively underrepresented in the technology world and we see that reflected in the products,’ she said.
Yesterday it emerged that nearly half of men could see themselves buying a sex robot in the near future.
Findings presented at the conference suggested robots will become an increasingly popular companion in the bedroom, warranting a system of ethics for their development and use.
In one study, the researchers surveyed 263 heterosexual males between the ages of 18 and 67.
Participants were shown two-minute videos of female humanoid robots. The team also conducted ‘personality measures’ and ‘attractiveness ratings.’
Then, the men were asked whether they would buy such a robot for themselves now or within the next five years.
The study revealed a staggering number of men admitted they would buy a sex robot, with 40.3 per cent of participants responding in this way.
‘I wanted to see what kind of characteristics influence the use of sex robots,’ Jessica Szczuka from the University of Duisburg-Essen said at the conference.
‘We react towards computers and machines as we do with human beings. This involves showing empathy and keeping an interpersonal distance with robots.’
The researchers also noted lonely men were more likely to attribute human characteristics to robots.
By turning to sex-bots, however, humans may over-exert themselves to the point of collapse, researchers warned.
Nearly half of men could see themselves buying a sex robot in the near future. But, if they aren’t careful, the tireless robots could push their human lovers over the edge, experts have warned. Stock image
Oliver Bendel, a researcher from the University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Northwestern Switzerland, says the development of sex robots should be subjected to questions of machine ethics, the Register reports.
Bendel warned there are ‘physical limits’ to human sexuality – especially for men.
As robots have the potential to carry on without tiring out, this could put users at risk of over-exertion.
‘If the machine over-exerts the human, it reduces the possibility of human sex,’ Bendel said.
Another question included whether robots should be able to ‘entice’ users, according to the Register.
And in extreme circumstances, the expert wonders whether robots should be able to refuse, and if they should be compelled to reveal they are robots.