【明報專訊】The European Consumer Organisation (歐洲消費者組織, BEUC) and the Electronic Privacy Information Center (美國電子私隱信息中心, EPIC) have filed complaints about smart toys, alleging violations of privacy and data protection laws. Smart toys like Hello Barbie and i-QUE Intelligent Robot can be connected to the Internet via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth (藍牙). They are designed to record and collect children's private conversations with no restrictions on data collection, use or disclosure. EPIC has described them as "toys that spy" and said they pose a threat to children's security.

Citing a study the Norwegian Concumer Council (挪威消費者委員會) has done, BEUC has discovered that one only has to go through simple steps before one can control such toys with a mobile phone and then talk and listen through them. The speech data would be transferred to a company in the US, which reserves the rights to use such data for other purposes and share it with third parties. The groups have urged the US Federal Trade Commission (聯邦貿易委員會) to investigate the matter and stop the manufacturers from misusing the data they have collected.(sources: Ming Pao, AFP, Mettel's website)

■ Photo Story

Talking to a Hello Barbie may put one's privacy at risk, because it may be collecting speech data.

■ Quiz

Answer the following questions. (Answers on next text)

1. Is the following sentence true or false?

BEUC and EPIC have said it may be against the law to play with a Hello Barbie. (True / False)

2. What did EPIC call the toys concerned?

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3. The Consumer Council of ______ has found that smart toys can be controlled with a mobile phone.

a. Norwegian

b. Norway

c. the Norwegian

d. the Norway

4. Find in paragraph two a word that is similar to "producers" in meaning.

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■ English highway﹕centre and center

Some words have different spellings in British English than in American English. A common example is "centre" in British English, which is spelled "center" in American English. Similar examples include "metre" (meter) and "theatre" (theater).

■ Glossary

disclosure (n) 披露

spy (v) 當間諜

transfer (v) 轉移

misuse (v) 濫用