UPSC Prelims 2024 CSAT Paper II · Q62 of 79 Comprehension medium

Passage

Passage—2 Now-a-days there is a growing trend to use interconnected home devices. As consumers increasingly network their homes, the connected home device manufacturers and service providers will seek to overcome "thin profit margins by gathering more of our personal data—with or without our agreement—turning the home into a corporate storefront". Corporate marketers will have powerful incentives to observe consumer behaviour to understand the buying needs and preferences of the device owners.

Which one of the following statements best reflects the most logical, rational and practical message implied by the passage?

  1. (a) Knowledge of consumer behaviour leads to more capital expenditure in manufacturing sector.
  2. (b) Knowledge of consumer behaviour stimulates the growth of commerce and trade and thus helps in the overall economic development of the country.
  3. (c) Interconnected devices give a lot of comfort to home users and improve the overall quality of life.
  4. (d) Interconnected devices can be at security risk and home users may have privacy risk. ✓ UPSC's answer

Why the answer is (d)

• The passage highlights that manufacturers and service providers use interconnected home devices to gather personal data to overcome thin profit margins.

• It explicitly states that this data collection happens 'with or without our agreement,' indicating a lack of user consent.

• The text describes the home being turned into a 'corporate storefront' where marketers observe consumer behavior.

• This surveillance and data harvesting without consent directly implies that users face significant privacy risks.

• Therefore, the most logical and practical message is that interconnected devices pose security and privacy threats to home users.

Why the other options are wrong

(a) Knowledge of consumer behaviour leads to more capital expenditure in manufacturing sector.
The passage focuses on data collection for marketing and profit, not on capital expenditure in the manufacturing sector.
(b) Knowledge of consumer behaviour stimulates the growth of commerce and trade and thus…
The text does not discuss the broader impact of consumer behavior knowledge on the country's overall economic development.
(c) Interconnected devices give a lot of comfort to home users and improve the overall…
While comfort is a feature of such devices, the passage's central argument is about the negative implications of data exploitation, not quality of life improvements.

Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2024, held on 16 June 2024. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.

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