Are Smartwatches Safe to Wear? Everything You Should Know

Smartwatches have been a source of ease for all kinds of people around the world including men and women, adults and children, working or not. But, are smartwatches safe to wear? Here’s the answer:

Smartwatches are safe to wear for all age groups. Although they do emit radiation, they’re not strong enough to cause harm. Even if you wear smartwatches all the time, they won’t be harmful.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has also assured smartwatch brands and consumers that smartwatches are safe to wear and their emissions cannot harm users’ health.

The organization went on to say that there’s not enough evidence to support the notion that radiation poses threat to human health.

In this article, I’ll discuss the concerns about smartwatches,

What Kind of Concerns Has Been Noted With Smartwatches?

Invasion of privacy and some attention-deficit issues are two of the major concerns that have come to the surface after the use of smartwatches. Another point of worry is safety, such as driving while distracted by the smartwatch.

Moreover, some people have also complained about safety issues, which is in a way related to focusing and attention too. The wearers believe they lose focus when they receive notifications from their fancy-looking smartwatches while driving or doing something really important.

All of these issues have been researched thoroughly to make sure to initiate all the necessary arrangements and changes in smartwatches.

As important as a smartwatch is turning out to be for a lifestyle, it is also of grave importance that one protects privacy and safety first.

» Read more about this in my post: Best Fitness Trackers For Treadmill Running

What Are The Protections Tips For Using Smartwatches?

Users can ensure safety by doing the following:

• Opt for FCC (Federal Communications Commission) approved smartwatches. 
• Wear them only when you need them.
• Put your smartwatches on silent/airplane mode when you’re in a meeting or social gathering.
• Wear smartwatches that have casing against radiations.

How Do Smartwatches Affect Privacy?

Like smartphones, smartwatches, too collect a lot of personal information about you and send it to you via Bluetooth and the internet. One data breach can expose a user’s data to a hacker, which is a major privacy concern.

If we analyze the information individually, like, GPS location, motion tracking, credit card transactions, and calendar it may appear as something of little concern. However, when these facts are merged, they can reveal your ATM PINs, passwords, daily routine, and more to the hacker. 

If we look at it in a calculated manner, if your manufacturer stores and processes your data using centralized, in-house systems, a single firm hack may expose you to data theft.

What Are the Dynamics of the Attacker Or Spy Controlling Your Smartwatch?

The attackers or spies can get through the shell of your device by only knowing a few tricks. They work their way towards copying all of your data and stealing valuable information from you just by hacking some apps through links.

If your smartwatch has the feature of letting your guardian listen to you for monitoring via audio through a listening device, this can also pose danger. This way an attacker can also hack your watch and listen to your surroundings pretty easily, throwing privacy down the drain.

It was also found that attackers can directly contact the smartwatch wearers. They can also transmit the users’ personal details to various servers in other parts of the world like East Asia and North America.

» Read my blog post: Best Smartwatches For Swimming

How Can We Make a Change In The Privacy Aspects Of Smartwatches?

Here are the following ways you can address your privacy issues:

• Turn on the “activation lock” setting to protect your watch from being accessed.
• Activate two-factor authentication so you’re always the one to give confirmation on the second device.
• Put up a password on your device to reduce accessibility.

Can Smartwatches Compromise Your Safety? 

Technically, smartwatches can compromise your safety. Although, if used responsibly, they do not pose much danger. However, this does not apply to anyone that has a habit of being distracted easily or prioritizing the wrong things at the wrong times.

For example, driving in traffic, on a fast road, or driving while being drunk and attending to a notification on your smartwatch can literally put your life at risk.

If you stop focusing on the road to look at an incoming text message or any kind of notification on your smartwatch, it can end badly.

Other than that, if you’re performing a heavy-duty task, or looking after a baby then you may want to turn off your smartwatch and attend to the task at hand, otherwise, you can surely land in trouble.

How Can We Prioritize Our Safety While Driving With a Smartwatch On?

There are a few tips and tricks you can follow to ensure safety:

• Don’t wear a smartwatch while you drive.
• Put it on silent or on airplane mode.
• Make sure you focus on the road while driving and do not attend to the notification.
• Look at the watch once you’ve stopped at a traffic signal.

» Maybe this also could be of interest to you: Best Tactical Smartwatches Today

How Can Smartwatches Save Our Lives In Hazardous Situations?

Where using a smartwatch is a safety hazard while driving, smartwatches nowadays have many great features of SOS (signal for distress) updated and available for you. This way you can rely on your smartwatch to send the SOS signals to your trusted family members, friends, or other loved ones whenever you are in sudden danger.

These notifications will go straight to your selected emergency contacts after your device automatically senses you being in potential danger.

Moreover, these SOS signals also alert the nearby emergency departments that run to your help afterward. So, this is indeed a great feature in smartwatches.

6 Tips to Use Smartwatches Safely

#1 Research the Smartwatch Security Features Before Purchasing

Haven’t you purchased a smartwatch yet?

Smartwatches come with a lot of security features, and not all of them are safe. Take a look at the smartwatch’s security features and make sure that the one you choose has features that will protect your data and personal information.

#2 Avoid Wearing Smartwatches While Being Asleep

While it’s generally safe to wear a smartwatch while you’re awake, avoid wearing it if you plan on sleeping during the night to avoid unnecessary extra exposure to radiation all the time.

#3 Read Smartwatch Instruction Manual Carefully

If you’re anything like me, you love your smartwatch but you also hate having to read through long instructions just to figure out how to use it properly.

Make sure to read the instructions carefully before using your device for the first time, and follow them religiously to avoid any uncomfortable surprises.

#4 Do Not Wear Smartwatches While Driving

When you’re driving, your primary focus should be on the road in front of you.

However, with the advent of smartwatches, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to screen out notifications and keep your eyes on the road at the same time.

That’s why it’s important to be aware of the dangers of using smartwatches while driving and take proper precautions to stay safe.

#5 Use Smartwatches in Airplane Mode

If you’re too conscious about the radiation exposure, I would suggest making sure to switch it to airplane mode as much as possible.

This will disable all wireless functionality and prevent any potential radiation exposure from occurring.

#6 Use OldSchool Watches

Though smartwatches offer many conveniences, there are some potential hazards you should be aware of when using them — Why not stick to an old watch?

Yes, even outdated smartwatches are capable of transmitting a great deal of personal information and data, which is why we recommend that you stick to old-school watches instead.

#7 Keep Your Smartwatch Software Up to Date

As the technology powering smartwatches evolves, so too does the risk of cyber attacks.

Protect yourself by ensuring that your smartwatch software is always up to date and that you are installing the latest security patches.

By doing so, you can minimize the risk of being hacked, and protect your personal data from being compromised. Additionally, always keep your smartwatch safe by protecting it with a strong password and never leaving it unsecured in public or unlocked.

#8 Don’t Leave Your Smartwatch Charging Unattended

It might be easy to leave your smartwatch charging unattended, but doing so could be risky. Leaving devices charging without being supervised can increase the risk of fires.

Charging smartwatches on bed stands and nightstands is the most dangerous, as these areas are often close to combustible materials.

#9 Be Careful About Apps You Download

Smartwatch apps are a great way to stay on top of your fitness and health goals, but make sure you download only the safe and appropriate apps.

Apps that track your activities, eating habits, sleeping patterns, and more can be really helpful, but they can also be really intrusive and distracting.

If you’re not comfortable with the level of detail these apps provide, or if you feel like they’re invading your privacy, it might be best to steer clear.

» You can also read my post: Best Smartwatches With Speaker And Microphone

Conclusion

As for privacy, smartwatches do seem to have some issues regarding the security locks of many smartwatches around the world. This issue is being overlooked by the manufacturers currently.

For safety concerns, it should be taken into account that this mostly depends on the user and not the smartwatch, unless you have powered it off during important events.

I hope this article has done its job to clarify most of your concerns regarding smartphones being safe to wear or not.