Imagine a world where you get an email from your fridge just as you leave work letting you know you need eggs, carrots and milk. Your car is programmed to go to the store and you just need to push a button and it drives you there based on the best route on current traffic patterns. In the store, your phone maps out where each item is and its price. As you walk out the door you a screen flashes with the total and it is automatically taken out of your bank account as per a prearranged contract with the bank. The Internet of Things was discussed at the BC Privacy Security and Privacy Conference which I attended recently.
Imagine your shirt letting you know what your blood pressure is and your shoes recording your steps taken and this is all displayed on your own personal bio screen which you can check whenever you want.
This is the internet of things and it is on our doorsteps. What will a world like this be like? How can we control our personal space, and our rights, if stats like this become so easily available to our commercial items? This new web of connectivity is stretching the boundaries of privacy and challenging what we consider to be part of our beings. Is the world ready for socks that diagnose fallen arches and recommend a doctor to see?