Once upon a time, the idea of household appliances eavesdropping on our every word seemed like a dystopian fantasy cooked up by conspiracy theorists. Fast forward to today, and it’s not science fiction—it’s just another Tuesday. The latest offender? Your beloved air fryer.
Yes, you heard that right. According to a new report from the Australian watchdog group Which?, some smart air fryers are doing more than crisping up your fries—they're tuning into your kitchen conversations and sending your data straight to servers in China. Because apparently, the secrets to Aunt Carol's casserole recipe are of great geopolitical interest.
The air fryers under scrutiny—manufactured by Chinese brands like Xiaomi, Tencent, and Aigostar—are not only dependent on being paired with your phone but also demand access to record audio. For what purpose? That remains as mysterious as the soggy batch of fries they occasionally produce.
Oh, and it gets better. The Xiaomi and Aigostar fryers also took the liberty of shipping users’ personal data back to China. Makes you wonder: is there a Chinese server somewhere cataloging a global playlist of sizzling bacon and household squabbles?
Why does an air fryer need this level of access? Do the algorithms need to analyze the frequency of you saying “extra crispy”? Or are they plotting a kitchen coup with the blender and toaster?
It’s not just air fryers getting in on the espionage action. The Which? report also highlighted a slew of other smart devices that have boundary issues. For example, the Huawei Ultimate smartwatch requested nine “risky” permissions. We’re talking access to your precise location, microphone, files, and the complete list of your installed apps.
Imagine this conversation:
You: “Why does my watch need to know my location?”
Watch: “Because it cares. And also because Beijing does.”
At this point, one can’t help but pine for the good old days of dumb gadgets. A watch that just tells the time. A thermostat that does its job without requiring a 2FA login. An air fryer that… fries.
Stephen Almond, executive director of regulatory risk at the ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office), put it bluntly:
“Consumers are paying twice. First for the product, and second, with their data.”
And that data isn’t just sitting in a digital shoebox somewhere. It’s being mined for targeted ads, market research, and who knows what else. The companies, of course, insist they’re being “transparent” about their invasive practices. You just have to wade through an 8,000-word terms-of-service document, written in a dialect only corporate lawyers understand, to find out.
Australia, to its credit, is stepping in with updated guidelines for manufacturers. Starting next year, firms must comply with stricter data protection laws, which will ideally put a lid on these privacy breaches. An ICO spokesperson said the guidelines will provide “clear expectations” for the industry to follow.
But let’s be honest—until these measures take root globally, it’s hard not to feel like we’re all living in an episode of Black Mirror.
While the rest of the world catches up, here’s a survival guide:
Until the day privacy becomes a standard feature, I’ll be outside grilling my chicken tenders on a gloriously unsmart BBQ. My dumb grill doesn’t ask for my location or stream my witty banter to a server halfway across the globe. It just cooks. And that’s all I ever wanted.
Stay vigilant, friends. And maybe, just maybe, don’t trust your air fryer.
