Empowering Privacy in the Connected Home Communal Use of Smart Technologies

最新一波联网智能家居技术承诺提供便利，并对不同系统的不同网络进行控制，如家用电器、公用事业和娱乐设备。事实证明，在便利性和控制性之间取得平衡对产品设计师来说是一个雷区。首先，这些技术的数据需求放大了人们对不当数据收集和处理做法的担忧，突显了用户和制造商之间的电力失衡。其次，便利和控制有利于具体的使用做法，这些做法体现在家庭成员之间的相关权力差异上。此外，设备有时被用于强制控制或家庭虐待。这些都是家庭中浮出水面的信息和人际隐私问题。然而，由于技术的快速发展，这些问题的性质仍然没有得到充分的探索。为了填补这一研究空白，我们提出的问题是：生活在互联家庭中的家庭如何才能在隐私方面获得授权？因为隐私是一个概念，会有很多不同的定义和解释，所以本文采用了探索性和归纳性的方法。它通过四个步骤来探讨总体研究问题：(1)34个半结构化访谈，询问人们连接互联网和智能设备的使用实践；(2)为期六个月的民族方法学研究，对六个家庭使用智能家居设备的体验进行研究；(3)一个概念框架，为研究和设计定位新发现；(4)两个案例研究，证明该框架对智能家居隐私的适用性。对访谈数据的归纳主题分析提供了对家庭中技术使用的公共方式的洞察。在这些见解及其与隐私的关系的基础上，我们使用扎根的分析来分析和展示来自家访、个人日记和观察的数据。对民族方法学概念的敏感化为建立公共使用提供了重点和视角。主要发现包括(1)流动的劳动分工(计划内和计划外)，有助于构建与设备有关的角色；(2)家庭成员的互动有助于正常感(例如，适当使用)和家庭内外关系的管理；(3)家庭成员有时在规则中阐明这一常态，以强调对使用的期望和对隐私的日常考虑。我们使用概念框架分析将这些见解与现有关于智能技术隐私的文献中的重要概念联系起来。该框架提供了额外的代理视角和敏感概念，为研究和设计方面的创新提供信息。案例研究利用该框架讨论了研究贡献的长处和短处。从这项研究中获得的见解为数据保护法规以及关于家庭中人际权力失衡的学术辩论提供了启示。该项目属于EPSRC网络安全研究领域

he latest wave of internet-connected smart home technologies promises convenience and control over a diverse network of different systems, such as appliances, utilities, and entertainment devices. Striking the balance between convenience and control proves to be a minefield for product designers. Firstly, the data needs of these technologies amplify concerns over improper data collection and processing practices, highlighting a power imbalance between users and manufacturers. Secondly, convenience and control favour specific practices of use that manifest in related power differentials among household members. Additionally, devices are sometimes utilised for coercive control or domestic abuse.These are issues of information and interpersonal privacy that surface in the home. However, due to the rapid evolution of technology, the nature of these issues remains under-explored. To fill in this research gap, we ask: 'How can households living in connected homes be empowered in their privacy?' Because privacy is a concept that invites many different definitions and interpretations, the thesis adopts an exploratory and inductive approach. It approaches the overarching research question in four steps: (1) 34 semi-structured interviews inquiring people about their internet-connected and smart device usage practices; (2) a six-month ethnomethodologically informed study of six households' experiences with smart home devices; (3) a conceptual framework to position emerging findings for research and design; and (4) two case studies that demonstrate the applicability of this framework to privacy in smart homes.Inductive thematic analysis of interview data provided insights into the ways in which technology use in the home was communal. Building on these insights and their relationship to privacy, we used grounded analysis to analyse and presentdata from home visits, individual diaries, and observations. Sensitising concepts from ethnomethodology provided focus and perspectives on the establishment of communal use. Key findings include (1) fluid divisions of labour (planned and unplanned) that contributed to the construction of roles with respect to devices; (2) the ways in which household members' interactions contribute to a sense of normalcy (e.g. appropriate use)and to the management of relationships inside and outside the home; (3) that household members sometimes articulated this normalcy in rules to highlight expectations of use and everyday considerations of privacy. We used conceptual framework analysis to link these insights with salient concepts from existing literature on privacy for smart technologies. The framework offered an additional agentic perspective and sensitising concepts to inform innovation in research and design. The case studies drew on the framework to discuss strengths and weaknesses of research contributions. The insights gained from the study offer implications for data protection regulations along with academic debates on interpersonal power imbalances in the home.This project falls within the EPSRC Cyber Security research area