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CEO Reminds Everyone His Company Collects Customers' Sleep Data (404media.co) 46

Posted by BeauHD from the how-you-sleep-can-and-will-be-used-against-you-in-a-court-of-law dept.
An anonymous reader quotes a report from 404 Media: Matteo Franceschetti, the CEO of Eight Sleep, which makes the $2,295 smart mattress topper "The Pod" tweeted: "Breaking news: The OpenAI drama is real. We checked our data and last night, SF saw a spike in low-quality sleep. There was a 27 percent increase in people getting under 5 hours of sleep. We need to fix this. Source: @eightsleep data." Franceschetti's tweet reminds us that The Pod is essentially a mattress with both a privacy policy and a terms of service, and that the data Eight Sleep collects about its users can and is used to further its business goals. It's also a reminder that many apps, smart devices, and apps for smart devices collect a huge amount of user data that they can then directly monetize or deploy for marketing or Twitter virality purposes whenever they feel like it.

The Pod does "intelligent cooling and heating for any bed," and learns and adjusts the temperature of the bed based on your sleep habits, tracks your sleep and vital signs while you sleep, and gives you a "Sleep Fitness Score" based on your quality, routine, and time of sleep. As someone who often does not sleep well, The Pod is a compelling product that I cannot currently afford. Quickly, to get it out of the way: Eight Sleep's data does not and cannot actually show that "San Francisco" had a spike in low-quality sleep. What it shows is that people in San Francisco who have purchased a $2,295 smart mattress topper and have not successfully opted out of Eight Sleep's analytics -- a group that surely overindexes on tech workers -- slept less Sunday night.

The top of Eight Sleep's terms of service states "At Eight Sleep we pledge to respect your privacy and to keep your data safe. We only collect data that helps us improve our products and services." Both Eight Sleep's privacy policy and terms of service then go on to note that the company collects a huge amount of data that can be used for a wide variety of purposes, including marketing, retargeting, and scientific studies. It can also, apparently, be used by the CEO for commenting on the day's tech news. Specifically, the company notes that "data about your sleep activity is transferred from your Device to our servers" every time the Pod's app syncs with the Pod. Certain features on the device also require location data "including GPS signals, device sensors, Wi-Fi access points, and cell tower IDs." This data is then used to give users personalized sleep recommendations, but they are also "used in research to understand and improve the Eight Device and Eight Service," "to enforce the Eight Terms of Service," and, critically, "de-identified data that does not identify you may be used to inform the health and scientific community about trends; for marketing and promotional use; or for sale to interested audiences." The terms of service add that it "may share or sell" this data.
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CEO Reminds Everyone His Company Collects Customers' Sleep Data More

CEO Reminds Everyone His Company Collects Customers' Sleep Data

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  • Nice Trick (Score:4, Funny)

    by backslashdot ( 95548 ) on Tuesday November 21, 2023 @06:45PM (#64022561)

    He told them while they're sleeping. It met the legal requirement according to his attorneys.

  • Just sleep data? (Score:4, Interesting)

    by timeOday ( 582209 ) on Tuesday November 21, 2023 @06:57PM (#64022579)
    It must pick up data on non-sleeping bed activities, which must be odd to think about during such activities.

    • If you're thinking about that during such activities then you need a more exciting partner.

    • Well, if any company thinks they've hit some kind of goldmine collecting data peoples' sex habits, the joke's on them because I'd venture a guess most of us already get more than our fair share of spam for penis pills and dating sites.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

      Not just these guys. Smart watches/fitness bands do it too.

  • The only thing more appalling than a mattress that tells its manufacturer what you do in bed is that there's a lot of people who just don't care.

    • Hey, we see you're loosing sleep over this. We've sent a free ad subscription for benzo's your way. You will click eventually. Nightey night.

    • The only thing more appalling than a mattress that tells its manufacturer what you do in bed is that there's a lot of people who just don't care.

      Privacy isn't dead. People generally understand the difference between your life becoming an aggregated datapoint, and someone directly impacting you and your personal space. All those people with these smart mattresses will likely none the less have curtains they close at night and would report you to the police if you stood by their window and watched them sleep.

      • I bet the EULA allows that aggregated data point to become something very different whenever the company decides the profit outweighs the risk. And, of course, companies like this seem to regard "security" as just another marketing buzz word.

    • Not only what you're doing. Also when you're in bed and when not. I could imagine a lot of entities being interested in these data.

    • there's a lot of people who just don't care.

      Why should I care?

      What bad thing will happen to me if a corporation knows what time I fall asleep?

      • What bad thing will happen to me if a corporation knows what time I fall asleep?

        Probably ads in your dreams, like Futurama warned us about.

  • "Breaking News: During the past twelve months, it's come to our attention that most of you don't seem to be having any sex at all. We need to fix this. Source: @eightsleep data."

  • I never heard of this product until now, and companies need to stay the fuck out from under my sheets.

  • They also require a subscription to enable a lot of the cool features of the mattress topper. I wasn't easily able to find any information on energy consumption. It seems like this is a publicity stunt in advance of their Black Friday promotion (I saw something about $500 off). If they can't get bought out by Apple and rebranded as the iSleep Pro, they are probably doomed.

  • They've been brainwashed by that song:

    He sees you when you're sleeping
    He knows when you're awake

  • Hmmm, I never thought about a "smart" mattress or imagined they existed, but here we are. Apparently there's an actual target audience out there, and I'm happy for 'em if that's what they want.

    And yeah, definitely a bit creepy that they're sucking up all that data, including your sexy times and your nighttime pee schedule, plus god knows what else. Heart rate, body temp, respiration rate, etc etc.

    It's not for me but I could see where it might be useful for people with sleep disorders or other conditions.

    • And once again, there's no (consumer's) need for that data to ever leave the home.

      • And once again, there's no (consumer's) need for that data to ever leave the home.

        Yes and no, but mainly yes.

        I could see where the data might have to go somewhere for real analysis, but regardless it's still borderline creepy and worrisome.

    • Yes, the maker will be subpoenaed by our elected authorities' enforcement to determine how many were actually in your bed and whether the records match whose are normally in your bed at those hours. Algorithms will determine what the nature of your doings in bed based on the data they have and are getting. Seeking patterns with which to find error in your ways based on any authoritative decree. Don't worry, I'm sure your sex stuff is just fine and dandy. The observers will pass right by your data....most li

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