HAVE WE REACHED PEAK CREEPY? BY ALEXANDRA COULTON SEPTEMBER 3, 2014 Ever get that feeling that you’re being watched? Like somebody is recording your every move? Perhaps mannequins have started to talk to you? Once symptoms of extreme paranoia (or perhaps psychosis), all these things are now becoming part of our everyday life. Yes, even the mannequins. Technology company, Iconeme, have created mannequins that now have the ability to “communicate” with you as you walk past them. According to the CEO of Iconeme, Jonathan Berlin, the mannequins are designed to send you a “tap on the shoulder” as you walk past. Luckily, this “tap” is in the form of a notification to your smart phone, or a trip to your local shopping mall might start to appear more like a horror film than usual. The notification then sends you links to an application, where you can then find out exactly what the mannequin is wearing, what sizes are available, and where to find the items in store. Only one catch: you have to provide the app with your age, gender and size. There is no doubt that providing details like this will result in an even creepier amount of targeted advertising. We all suffer from the targeted click. That dress you clicked on a few weeks ago that now wont stop appearing in advertisements on your Facebook feed. Or perhaps you visited a real estate website: queue the stream of suggested houses in your area suddenly appearing in ad bars on the side of your page as you check your email. This is a game changer: Imagine walking past a mannequin only for it to say, “I’ve got the size you want. By the way, how’re the knickers you bought last week going?” On top of that, the NSW department of transport is trying to set you up with the ultimate creepy boyfriend. Introducing Opal, the pocket-sized companion that is beginning to replace paper train tickets. If you’re an avid public transport user, Opal may soon be following you around, recording where you go and how long you’ve been there. Here’s the best part, Opal is not only a stalker, he’s also a snitch and he cannot wait to tell his two best friends the police and the ATO where you’ve been. They don’t need a warrant and you don’t even need to be a suspect. Watch A Rational Fear’s hilarious take on just how creepy Opal can be. youtu.be/Xu7tgM--PiE While you’re being followed, you may as well be recorded as well. We’ve all heard about Google Glasses and how they have the ability to record and take snapshots of basically anything you can reach with two legs. But have you heard about how Google had to tell its glasses users to stop being creepy? On their website, under a section of “Do’s” and “Don’ts”, Google found it necessary to add to the “Don’ts” section: “[Don’t] Be creepy or rude (aka, a “Glasshole”). Respect others’ privacy and if they have questions about Glass don’t get snappy. Be polite and explain what Glass does and remember, a quick demo can go a long way. In places where cell phone cameras aren’t allowed, the same rules will apply to Glass. If you’re asked to turn your phone off, turn Glass off as well. Breaking the rules or being rude will not get businesses excited about Glass and will ruin it for other Explorers.” This handy hint was inspired by technologist, Robert Scoble who tweeted that he wears Google Glasses in public restrooms: Yes, I do wear Google Glass into public restrooms. So far no trouble. Would you? At NextWeb @andrewkeen and I will talk about that. — Robert Scoble (@Scobleizer) April 23, 2013 Yes, it happening. People are now allowed to wear spy-like cameras strapped to their face and it is considered normal. Sure, Google Glasses display a red light when they are recording, but it’s only a matter of time before somebody works out how to disable it. Once upon a time is was considered stalking to record a persons whereabouts, collect information about them and take sneaky pictures, today it’s just called technology.
Posted on: Wed, 03 Sep 2014 04:39:49 +0000
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