In recent years, children’s smartwatches have become popular among parents and children. However, due to the unique nature of child users, the underlying concerns have also attracted widespread attention. Recently, the alliance technical specification formulated by the China Cybersecurity Industry Alliance, the “Guidelines for the Protection of Personal Information and Rights of Children’s Smartwatches,” has officially been implemented. This non-mandatory “Guideline” aims to provide a new solution for issues arising from children’s smartwatches, such as personal information protection and curbing inducement consumption.
Concerns Behind the Intelligence
Nearly 20% of consumers have encountered information leakage issues
In recent years,
with the enhancement of functions in children’s smartwatches,
issues such as inducement consumption and invasion of personal privacy have become increasingly prominent.
Liu Xing, an engineer at the Cybersecurity Center of the China Electronics Standardization Institute, told reporters that to cut costs, some manufacturers have opted for low-version operating systems that have not undergone security hardening,
allowing apps within the watch to access many sensitive permissions such as location, phone numbers, microphone, and camera without user authorization,
posing significant risks to children. Among them, cheap and unbranded children’s smartwatches are the hardest hit.
Ms. You from Beijing told reporters, “I sometimes find my child chatting with kids whose names I don’t recognize. It’s possible that some people are using children’s watches to randomly add minors for chatting.”
Ms. You believes that features like ‘tap to connect’ or ‘add friends’ require parental vigilance, as children lack discernment and can easily be deceived.
The Jiangsu Provincial Consumer Rights Protection Committee once released a consumer survey report on children’s smartwatches, which showed that 17.11% of consumers reported experiencing personal information leakage from children’s smartwatches, and 32.89% of consumers expressed a desire for measures to be taken to further enhance the information security of these watches.
Information Protection Has a Handle
The “Guideline” Provides Solutions
“In the face of problems, promoting the industry to get back on track requires the establishment of a standard with actionable measures.” One of the drafters of the “Guideline,” He Yanzhe, deputy director of the Cybersecurity Testing Laboratory at the China Electronics Standardization Institute, told reporters: “Based on the assessment of various children’s smartwatches on the market, the ‘Guideline’ consolidates the well-performing features into a collection, then writes it in standardized language, turning it into a common reference for everyone.”
According to reports, the “Guideline” combines the newly issued “Regulations on the Protection of Minors Online” and the “Guidelines for the Construction of Minor Modes in Mobile Internet” for public consultation, setting up targeted chapters on children’s personal information security, guardian control, and online content safety for children’s smartwatches. At the same time, it emphasizes the management of children’s smartwatches by guardians, and establishes a dedicated chapter on “guardian control,” detailing requirements for application installation control, function control, time control, and social control, aiming to provide manufacturers of children’s smartwatches with comprehensive, clear, and understandable guidelines for easier implementation.
The “Guideline” stipulates that children’s smartwatches involving information interaction and information release functions should set up features and channels that facilitate children and their guardians to save records of online bullying and exercise notification rights; if the number of child users exceeds 100,000, a dedicated channel (or sub-channel) for reporting online bullying should be established; a one-click bullying protection feature should be set up to mark accounts suspected of participating in online bullying and include them in classified management.
The Strictest Standards Regulate Product Production
Check for the 3C Mark on Electronic Products When Purchasing
At a Huawei store in Xinjiekou, Beijing, children’s smartwatches occupy a prominent position, with prices ranging from hundreds to thousands of yuan.
Children’s watches in the specialty store. Wu Xiaoli/photo
“Nowadays, children’s watches come with more and more features, and children like to compare, often asking parents to replace them with more expensive watches or those with certain functions.” Ms. You said, “Children’s smartwatches help kids establish social circles, but they can also be easily assimilated by these circles and influenced by the public.”
Industry insiders point out that parents’ core needs are positioning and communication, while other features are auxiliary. To address parents’ pain points, manufacturers must adhere to the strictest standards to regulate their product lines. At the same time, to meet the legal protection of minors and ensure that guardians can use them with peace of mind, leading manufacturers of children’s smartwatches should strive to adopt the same standards and models. Currently, it is recommended that consumers pay attention to whether the products have the electronic 3C mark, network access certificate, model approval, and to be mindful of warranty and exchange policies when purchasing related products.
Source/ China Consumer News · China Consumer Network
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