Internet of Torment: the Governance of Smart Home Technologies Against Technology-Facilitated Violence
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Internet of Torment: The Governance of Smart Home Technologies against Technology-Facilitated Violence by Olivia Faria A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Communication with specialization in Data Science Carleton University Ottawa, Ontario September 2020, Olivia Faria Abstract While smart home technologies (SHTs) such as smart speakers are often marketed as solutions to automate daily household activities and chores, such as managing calendars, ordering food, playing music or locking the doors, these same technologies can be used to cause harm. This thesis examines the emergence of smart home technology- facilitated violence (smart home TFV) in Canada to assess 1) how these Internet of Things (IoT) devices can be misused as technologies of torment and 2) how and why we may want to examine this phenomenon as part of a wider sociotechnical system of human and non-human actors. First, smart home technologies are situated in the history of home automation and gendered design, conceptually in the research of technology facilitated violence, within a Canadian policy and legal environment and as part of technical research on smart home technology safety by way of an interdisciplinary literature review. Secondly, a modified Walkthrough Method (Light, Burgess and Duguay, 2018) was applied to study the popular Google Nest Mini smart speaker to identify how this device may be misused, which features enable potential misuse and to better understand how the device is reflective of broader corporate values, visions and operating models. Thirdly, a hybrid theoretical framework combining assemblage theory (Kitchin, 2014), actor-network theory (Latour, 1988; Latour, 2005) and multi-scalar analysis (Edwards, 2003) was developed and applied to frame the study of this complex technological system and to structure the collection of observations and analyze results arranged into micro, meso and macro scales. This approach illuminates what may initially be misconstrued as an isolated, one-on-one dispute as a practice that is enabled, mitigated, and ultimately shaped by a variety of contexts and interactions with other components within a complex and heterogeneous sociotechnical assemblage (Kitchin, 2014). This thesis argues that conceptualizing the issue in this way is effective as an interdisciplinary approach, foregrounds the mutually shaping relationship between technology and society and how these issues are reproduced across different scales, which informs and facilitates remedial actions. The thesis concludes with recommendations and reflections on the strengths and limitations of this research. ii Acknowledgements Para minha querida família, sou grato por seus sacrifícios e amor incondicional. Nenhuma outra alegria se compara a ver todos vocês orgulhosos de mim. Thank you to Dr. Tracey Lauriault, my mentor and thesis supervisor, who has guided and supported me through my academic journey over the past four years. She has provided me several academic opportunities, encouraged me to pursue a master’s degree, taught me so many things about becoming a scholar and I will always cherish my time working with her. I will miss sitting in her comfy visitor’s chair and seeing the stack of books from the Lauriault Library pile up on the ottoman as we brainstormed ideas. Thank you to my committee of Dr. Rena Bivens and Dr. Stephen Fai for your insightful feedback and diverse perspectives that ultimately enhanced this work. I would also like to thank the Department of Communication and Media Studies as a whole. As an undergrad from a different department, I always felt so welcomed by the wonderful faculty and staff of this department. It has been an honour and privilege to do my master’s degree there. I would like to extend an extra thank you to Dr. Liam Young and Dr. Dwayne Winseck who saw potential in me during my undergrad and encouraged me to pursue graduate studies, something I never thought possible at the time. To my friends, near and far, thank you for always putting a smile on my face and getting me through this gruelling yet rewarding process. Special thanks to Maya (for always being the supportive voice of reason), Magda (for always making me laugh even at the lowest points) and Kalila (for letting me vent and ramble whenever and always cheering me on from across the pond). Last but certainly not least, I am grateful for the financial support from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the Federation of Portuguese-Canadian Business & Professionals (FPCBP) Antonio Sousa Community Pioneer Award. iii Table of Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................... iii Table of Contents ......................................................................................................... iv List of Tables ............................................................................................................... vi List of Figures .............................................................................................................. vi List of Appendices ..................................................................................................... viii Chapter 1: Introduction and Thesis Question .............................................................9 1.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 9 1.2 Thesis Questions and Roadmap ................................................................................ 13 Chapter 2: Literature Review .................................................................................... 15 2.1 History of Home Automation and Gendered Design ................................................. 16 2.2 The State of Technology Facilitated Violence (TFV) Research ................................. 23 2.3 Canadian Policy and Legal Environment .................................................................. 31 2.4 Technical Research on Smart Home Technology Safety ........................................... 44 2.5 Summary.................................................................................................................. 56 Chapter 3: Theoretical Framework ........................................................................... 58 3.1 Assemblage Theory .................................................................................................. 59 3.2 Actor-Network Theory (ANT) .................................................................................. 63 3.3 Multi-Scalar Approach to Sociotechnical Systems (Edwards) ................................... 65 3.4 Hybrid Theoretical Framework ................................................................................. 67 Chapter 4: Methodology ............................................................................................. 68 Chapter 5: Observations from the Walkthrough Method ........................................ 75 5.1 Environment of Expected Use .................................................................................. 75 5.1.1 Vision .................................................................................................................. 76 5.1.2 Operating Model .................................................................................................. 86 5.1.3 Governance .......................................................................................................... 90 iv 5.1.4 Technical Walkthrough ........................................................................................ 92 5.2 Modifications to the Walkthrough Method ............................................................... 98 5.2.1 Unintended Uses .................................................................................................. 98 5.2.2 Data ................................................................................................................... 102 5.3 Summary................................................................................................................ 109 Chapter 6: Discussion ............................................................................................... 110 6.1 Micro Scale Analysis ............................................................................................. 111 6.2 Meso Scale Analysis .............................................................................................. 117 6.3 Macro Scale Analysis ............................................................................................. 129 6.4 Summary................................................................................................................ 136 Chapter 7: Conclusion .............................................................................................. 138 7.1 Limitations, Future Work and Final Thoughts......................................................... 143 Appendices ................................................................................................................. 146 Appendix A : Charlevoix Commitment (G7 Nations, 2018)................................................. 146 Appendix B : Funded Initiatives under the Strategy to Prevent Gender-Based Violence (derived from