IoT news of the week for Sept. 2, 2022

Hello Kitty, meet Raspberry Pi: There’s yet another use for the inexpensive Raspberry Pi compute board. And you’re not likely to guess it, so I’ll just tell you: Someone made a cat doorbell using a Pi. No, the cat doesn’t press a button or show up on video. Instead, the Raspberry Pi listens at the front door and uses the open source TensorFlow Lite machine learning platform to determine if it hears a “meow.” I guess that’s to keep away any dogs posing as door-to-door salesmen. If the cloud-connected Raspberry Pi confirms a feline voice, it sends a text message, alerting you to let the kitty in the house. Clever! (Tom’s Hardware) — Kevin C. Tofel

Ring’s new product is an intercom: There’s a new addition to Ring’s hardware lineup and it sounds great for apartment dwellers. The Ring Intercom integrates with a legacy intercom system, adding mobile access to it. Ring’s add-on has a Wi-Fi radio, so it can route visitors’ voices to your phone, even if you’re not at home. And if your current system lets you buzz people into your building, you can do that remotely, too. Starting later this month the product will be available in the U.K. for £119.99, with additional European country support to follow. Look for U.S. availability next year. (The Verge) — Kevin C. Tofel

Withings is going big with a new subscription and scale: We have a range of smart scales to choose from these days, so what’s one more? This Body Comp from Withings stands out for two reasons. First, it adds sensors and algorithms for a nerve health assessment. That’s in addition to the body composition and cardiovascular assessment you’ll find on competing products. Second, Withings is launching a new Health+ subscription program that comes with the Body Comp scale. And by “comes with” I mean you’ll pay $209.95 for the scale and a year of Health+. Given that I’ve paid $25 for a smart scale, I can see why Withings is going the subscription route. All that health data being analyzed provides additional value, but if you only charge for the hardware, you’re giving that value away for free. Look for the Withings Body Comp to go on sale next month. (9to5 Mac) — Kevin C. Tofel

Automotive data company Otonomo to lay off employees: This is my least favorite type of news to write, but times are tough and the bloom is off the rose when it comes to the years of easy money for tech companies. Among the latest examples is connected car company Otonomo, which has lost 90% of its public value and will lay off dozens of employees. Otononmo went public via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) last year and peaked at $1.26 billion. As of Thursday, it is now worth just $54.3 million. For more on the company, check out a podcast I did with one of its executives two years ago. (CTech) — Stacey Higginbotham

Intel has launched new edge chips: Intel has released its 12th Gen Intel Core SoC processors for IoT Edge. These aren’t designed for the battery-powered sensor edge, but rather for gateways and computers that will run locally, taking in data from sensors and other connected devices. Intel has lowered the power consumption and beefed up the graphics capabilities with this generation of chips, enabling them to power kiosks and other devices that have screens. (Intel) — Stacey Higginbotham

Are you ready to think about the privacy implications of the metaverse? Even if you aren’t, check out this research paper, which lays out some of the potential concerns around privacy in augmented and virtual reality and then provides some legislative options for protecting user privacy. It’s full of terrifying information, such as the fact that commercial extended reality systems can track body movements 90 times per second and that 20 minutes in a VR simulation creates just under 2 million unique body language recordings that can include verbal utterances, the location of items in a room, body movement patterns, and more. (SSRN) — Stacey Higginbotham

The FCC hears back from telcos on privacy inquiry: A few weeks ago the FCC sent letters to the major wireless carriers asking about the location data they collect and what they do with it. The results are in, and most admit to tracking users’ locations to manage their network and provide quality service. Many also have various programs where other parties can get your data. Sometimes those programs are opt-in options like person-tracking services for families, while others are opt-out such as marketing messages from the carrier. In all cases, the carriers provide location information to law enforcement when faced with a warrant. Check out the responses and see how your cell phone provider shares your location data. (FCC) — Stacey Higginbotham

Carriers aren’t the only source of location data: While cell phone carriers do track a users location and will share it with law enforcement when presented with a warrant, not every cop needs to get one. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has discovered that police agencies across the country have contracted with a company called Fog Data Sciences to buy location information gathered from 250 million devices. The location data is often gathered from applications that people download onto their phones. Those app developers then take the location data and sell it to data brokers and companies like Fog Data. The EFF says Fog Data lets law enforcement subscribe to a service that lays out the location of these devices on a map that officers can use to see what devices are in the vicinity of a crime or follow specific devices as they roam about a city. Officers don’t need a warrant for this, although some do get one. This is terrifying and should be clearly disclosed to users. It probably should also be illegal or at least inadmissible in court. (EFF) — Stacey Higginbotham

The taxman cometh … with computer vision and a drone: The French equivalent of the IRS is using a drone running a computer vision algorithm to scan the countryside for homes with undisclosed swimming pools. When it finds them, it can then serve the homes with higher tax bills based on those homes having a higher value. It’s similar to cities in the U.S. that are using drones to scan for well-watered lawns during droughts in order to caution the home owners or fine them for using too much water. I admire the ability to get additional tax revenue from scofflaws, but it’s still a new level of surveillance wrought by AI and IoT. (Ars Technica) — Stacey Higginbotham

Wyld Networks will work with Miromico AG for next generation IoT satellite service: Wyld Networks, a company providing LoRaWAN coverage via low-earth satellites has signed a deal with Swiss firm Miromico. Miromico will help Wyld design and and manufacture sensor-to-satellite LoRaWAN terminals and modules. Miromico will also resell Wyld terminals and connectivity, while Wyld will sell Miromico sensors and use those sensors in solutions it develops for clients. (Via Satellite) — Stacey Higginbotham