How to Respect Bystanders' Privacy in Smart Homes - A Co-Creation Study

As technology advances, homes become more digitalized and evolve into smart homes. Bystanders, e.g. guests in smart homes, are often unaware of the smart home devices and the associated privacy risks that make them especially vulnerable. However, so far there is limited research on how the guests can be made aware of smart home devices in the household and how their resulting privacy preferences can be addressed while respecting the smart home owners’ preferences as well. To close this gap, we conducted three co-creation workshops with ten participants (N=10) developing various design solutions. Through a thematic analysis of our data, we identified design solutions for smart home devices and beyond, like higher-level applications for regulating privacy and inherent responsibility. We recommend a multi-modal approach focusing not only on the design of the devices but also on the higher-level management of privacy in smart homes.