Today I am speaking with Craig Rossman, president of Comfort Control for Copeland, on the topic of data privacy and whether it should factor in your decision to purchase a smart thermostat. Through its Sensi brand, Copeland offers a full line of smart thermostat technology backed by more than 100 years of HVAC experience and expertise. As smart devices become more ubiquitous in our everyday lives, consumers have grown concerned over the data they provide these devices and how it gets used by the manufacturer. This issue has made its way to the smart home sector, particularly with smart thermostats, so I asked Craig about Sensi’s position on data privacy and smart thermostats and what the public should be aware of when purchasing these products.
Gary Drenik: Why should consumers think about data privacy in regard to their smart thermostat?
Craig Rossman: With the Covid-19 pandemic came a major shift in how much time was being spent in our homes. Once relegated to sleep and family dinners, our residences became home offices or remote classrooms for the kids, creating a greater need to make the home more functional. To do so, millions of people added all types of connected devices to make their homes “smarter” with products like smart thermostats. Today, the average U.S. household now has around 22 connected devices. While these products have undoubtedly made our lives easier, giving manufacturers access to so much personal information has raised legitimate concerns over how that data is used or whether consumers are vulnerable to having their devices hacked or used to spy on them.
According to a recent Prosper Insights & Analytics survey, of those respondents using a smart home assistant, more than one fourth use it for controlling other smart home products such as lights and thermostats. And, as it relates to smart thermostats, consumers can expect these devices to collect information such as their name, address, email address, and other setup information. They can also collect environmental data, preferred temperature settings and other technical information. While some of this information may seem harmless, one can imagine the privacy and security risks of having data related to temperature settings when you’re home or not home compromised. Additionally, some smart thermostat owners don’t realize their data could also be leveraged by the manufacturer to a third party for marketing and advertising purposes.
Drenik: What have you heard from consumers when it relates to data privacy of their smart home products?
Rossman: According to a recent Smart Home Data Privacy Survey, about 80% of both smart thermostat owners and non-owners are concerned with smart thermostat manufacturers having access to their personal data. While many homeowners are concerned about the possibility of their data being compromised, what’s equally concerning is many still don’t understand what kind of data is shared with the manufacturer. In fact, only 13% of smart thermostat owners researched their manufacturers’ data privacy policy before purchase. Additionally, around 1 in 5 respondents admit they’re not sure what kind of information is shared. Upon learning the breadth of personal data available to manufacturers, 2 in 3 smart thermostat owners were at least “somewhat more concerned” about using their smart thermostats.
It’s also interesting to note that these concerns are shared across all demographics. That same survey found that more than 60 percent of respondents, including Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X and Boomers were likely to replace their device with one that prioritizes privacy. These results were consistent among respondents regardless of region or gender.
Drenik: How is Sensi addressing customer concerns around data privacy with its products?
Rossman: An advantage of Sensi smart thermostats is that we don’t make customers choose between taking advantage of the energy- and time-saving benefits of smart home technology and sharing their data to be used for third-party marketing purposes. While we do collect personal information to provide various service and product improvements, we don’t use customer smart thermostat activity for targeting or advertising purposes or sell personal data to anyone, for any reason. Settings are made solely by the user and Sensi thermostats do not make changes to settings based on assumptions about user priorities. And although compatible with major smart home platforms, Sensi users are not required to join one when setting up their product.
We are extremely proud that Sensi’s commitment to the privacy of our customers was recently highlighted by Frost & Sullivan in recognizing Copeland (Sensi’s parent company) with the 2023 North American Company of the Year Award. The award recognized our organization’s industry leadership in smart thermostat technology, product innovation and data privacy.
Drenik: What should consumers look for in smart home products to ensure they’re making the best decisions to secure their data?
Rossman: One of the easiest things consumers can do to protect themselves and be vigilant when it comes to smart thermostats and data privacy is to investigate what kinds of data the manufacturer collects. Most popular manufacturers offer robust privacy policies. This policy will give you a good idea as to how much the company prioritizes protecting customer data. Customers should also investigate whether the manufacturer sells or provides their data to any third party.
Drenik: How can the smart home product industry continue to evolve and become more responsible stewards of consumer’s data privacy?
Rossman: Managing customer data and information can be a complicated issue. However, I think all manufacturers would agree we should always focus on keeping our customers’ information safe and remain transparent about data usage so we can establish trust and peace of mind while building products that protect our customers. This means constantly innovating and investing in security technology, like encryption, and resources that help design and build secure products that safeguard this sensitive information.
Drenik: Craig, thank you so much for your time and insights today. I really appreciate it. For those interested in learning more about Sensi smart thermostats and its position on data privacy, click here.
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