Practical, helpful or prohibited?

The spy in the home - the Federal Network Agency warns urgently

Created: 12/21/2021, 2:30 PM

Sweet, soft, cuddly and a spy camera in a brown teddy bear.

Confiscated toys from the Federal Network Agency's electrical appliances exhibition.

© picture alliance / Henning Kaiser / dpa |

Henning Kaiser

Surveillance camera in the smoke detector?

Micro in the vacuum robot?

Smart devices can make life easier.

However, there is also a threat of espionage within your own four walls.

Where do consumers have to be careful?

Berlin - The vacuum robot cleans the floor, the slumbering toddler monitors the baby monitor and the refrigerator makes an announcement in good time when the butter is empty.

Such smart homes and similar devices should make life easier for consumers.

However, some devices that are networked and equipped with a camera or microphone can delicately interfere with the privacy of the user and inadvertently transmit data to third parties.

In order to protect privacy, devices that record images or sound unnoticed by other people and transmit them wirelessly to other devices such as smartphones are therefore prohibited in Germany, explains the Federal Network Agency.

Household Gadgets - When is a Product Banned?

"It is forbidden and even punishable to manufacture such telecommunications systems or to make them available on the market," writes the Federal Network Agency.

"The mere possession and importation into Germany are also prohibited."

As a rule, these are products that are particularly suitable and intended for unnoticed recordings.

This could be the case in particular when a microphone or camera is built into an everyday object or a dummy, for example in clocks, smoke alarms, lamps, pop-art flowers or power banks.

A product is also illegal if it can be controlled by an app and is suitable and intended for unnoticed eavesdropping or picture taking.

The product categories listed by the agency include vacuum robots, car keys, toy cars and dolls or even feeders for pets that have hidden, broadcast cameras and / or microphones.

Spy Gadgets - Are All Connected Toys Banned?

But be careful - not every toy that can be digitally controlled is a spy device.

There are numerous toys that, for example, record a child's questions but do not play them out.

Toys that only respond based on texts stored in the device and do not transmit audio files to third parties are also harmless.

Do smartphones with baby monitors contain spy software?

Many parents are concerned about their baby's safety and want to monitor them even while they sleep.

Classic baby monitors have been in use for decades.

Smartwatches are more modern which, in addition to the normal telephone function, have an eavesdropping function - often referred to as voice monitoring, baby monitor function, one-way conversation - or a concealed image recording function.

What can consumers do?

Consumers who want to purchase electronic devices should inform themselves in advance.

If you have bought a digital gadget or want to get one, you should take the time to read product descriptions, functionality and data protection regulations carefully, advises the Federal Network Agency.

Reading test reports is also often helpful.

Basically, it makes sense to check devices with cameras or micros and buy products from the EU.

Spy Gadgets - List of Prohibited Devices

For legal reasons, there is no list of illegal products.

The Federal Network Agency answers specific questions about products by phone on 030 - 22480 - 500 or by email via spionagegeraete@bnetza.de.