Amazon Kindle
Summary
Back before the days of social media, Netflix, and the ever decreasing attention span, the Kindle was a widely used book reader. From $89.99 to $249.99, the reader could be just the thing to get you back into book-reading shape. The Kindle only does books; no more videos, apps, or web surfing to distract you now!
Breach History
Has there ever been a breach or data leak?
Date of last breach
February 2020
A large database containing millions of European customer records was found unsecured on Amazon Web Services on February 3, 2020. Information from several companies was found on this database, such as Amazon, eBay, Shopify, PayPal, and Stripe. Leaked personal information could include name, shipping address, email, phone number, items purchased, payment history, and partially redacted credit cards.
Privacy Checklist
Is any kind of biometric data collected (health, heart, voice, etc.)?
Are you able to delete your data / the data collected about you?
Does it use cookies, telemetry, or third-party tracking scripts?
Is the privacy policy user-friendly (easy to understand)?
Does it have parental controls?
Does it use encryption to protect your data both in-transit and at-rest?
Does it get regular software and / or firmware updates?
Does it require you to create a strong password?
Is there a system in place for managing security vulnerabilities?
Does it have a privacy policy?
How Can It Snoop?
Does it have a camera or request / require access to a camera?
Does it have a microphone or request / require access to a microphone?
Does it track your location or request / require access to location data?
Account Requirements
Does it require an email address to use?
Does it require a phone number to use?
Does it require an address (home or office) to use?
Payment Options
Are you able to use a credit card as a payment option?
Are you able to use a cryptocurrency as a payment option?
Are you able to use PayPal as a payment option?
Are you able to use cash or gift cards as a payment option?
What Could Go Wrong?
Be aware that you need to change the password once you get the Kindle. You do not want anyone gathering any more information on you. Also, Amazon loves their ads, so be aware they may target you with ads based on what you like.
How Does It Share Your Data?
Amazon can use your device data for targeted ads that may be of interest, which can mean that your browsing and location data may be used by Amazon.
Good Things
- System in place for managing security vulnerabilities and regualr software/firmware updates.
Bad Things
- Amazon can use your device data to show customized ads; this data may include browsing and location information.
- Amazon's privacy information is written in fairly complex language that is very hard for users to understand.
Final Thoughts
Amazon notoriously collects a large amount of data on its users and uses it to target them with interest-based ads. Amazon was also included in a data breach that exposed information from several million European Amazon accounts. As a result, personal information seems to be at serious risk when provided to Amazon.