While this question might seem straight out of a poor-performing modern horror film, the idea is not entirely baseless, new research from consumer champion Which? has found.

Researchers with Which? found a range of evidence of excessive smart device surveillance, from air fryers listening in on conversations and sharing data with social media platforms, to TVs finding out users exact locations.

Which? rated products on the type of data they harnessed, finding that most data collection went well beyond what was necessary for the functionality of the product. Data could even be shared with third parties for marketing purposes.

Air Fryers

All three air fryer products  – which do not need to be connected to anything but a power outlet to function – were found to require the precise location of their customer, as well as recording audio on their user’s phone, for no reason.

The Xiaomi app linked to its air fryer connected to trackers from Facebook, Pangle (the ad network for TikTok for Business), and Chinese tech giant Tencent (depending on the user’s location).

The Aigostar air fryer wanted to know the gender and date of birth when setting up an owner account, though this was option. Both the Aigostar and Xiami fryers sent people’s personal data to servers in China, which was flagged in the privacy notice.

Smart Watches

The smart watches studied often required consent to their privacy settings in order to work their smart features. This was true for Amazon top-sellers Kuzil and WeurGhy, which were found to be essentially the same product.

Hauwei Ultimate smartwatch was found to request nine ‘risky’ phone permissions, which were defined as giving invasive access to parts of someone’s phone. These include precise location, the ability to record audio, access to stored files, and the ability to see all other apps installed. The company said that the data is not used for marketing or advertising purposes, and that the trackers Which? found were only active in certain regions.

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Smart TVs

Smart TV menus are littered with ads, and thirsty for user data. The Hisense and Samsung TVs required a postcode to set up, according to Which?.

LG asked for a postcode, but this was not mandatory. Samsung said a postcode was not mandatory for set up, but according to Which?’s tests, it appeared to be a requirement.

Samsung’s TV requested eight risky phone permissions, including seeing all apps on a user’s phone. The Hisense did not connect to any trackers, Which? found, but Samsung and LG linked to a range of them, including Facebook and Google.

Smart Speakers

According to Which?’s tests, Bose Home Portable speaker and app take the least upfront phone permissions out of all the products they tested, but are stuffed with trackers, including Facebook, Google, and Urbanairship. Their security measures also faired poorly.

Amazon Echo, on the other hand, provided options to skip various requests to share data, but they do require an Amazon or Google account to use the Echo Pop or Nest Mini, respectively. These speakers use their respective company’s trackers, which users cannot opt out of.

“Our research shows how smart tech manufacturers and the firms they work with are currently able to collect data from consumers, seemingly with reckless abandon, and this is often done with little or no transparency,” Harry Rose, Which? magazine editor, said.

“Which? has been calling for proper guidelines outlining what is expected of smart product manufacturers and the ICO has confirmed a code is being introduced in Spring 2025 – this must be backed by effective enforcement, including against companies that operate abroad.”