Fitbark 2
Review date: 11/02/2020
Stress and anxiety. Yup, we're all feeling it. Likely your pup is feeling it too. Well, now you can monitor your pup's stress and anxiety to either reduce or increase your own stress and anxiety. The Fitbark 2 lets owners track their dog's activity, sleep, skin itchiness, how much they scratch, and yes, even their stress and anxiety. Monitor it all in an app that connects to the fitness tracker your dog wears over Bluetooth. And then connect that to your own FitBit or Apple Watch and there you have it, you dog's fitness and stress data lined up right next to yours. This could be the most 2020 product ever.
What could happen if something goes wrong
This version of the Fitbark tracks your dog's movements and stress and shares them over Bluetooth to an app. Nothing too bad could likely happen with this. Except may your dog gets stressed that you're constantly checking an app to see if you dog is stressed instead of taking your dog out for a walk. Fitbark does say it may use, share, or sell anonymized personal data for marketing purposes. This is generally OK, although many privacy researchers will point out it is relatively easy to de-anonymize such data.
Privacy
Can it snoop on me?
Camera
Device: No
App: Yes
Microphone
Device: No
App: No
Tracks Location
Device: No
App: Yes
What is required to sign up?
Yes
Phone
No
Third party account
Yes
What data does it collect?
Personal
Name, email, phone number, address, date of birth, profile photo, dog's health
Biometric
Your dog's biometric data
Social
How can you control your data?
What is the company’s known track record for protecting users’ data?
No known incidents in the last 2 years.
Can this product be used offline?
User friendly privacy information?
Links to privacy information
Security
Does this product meet our Minimum Security Standards?
Encryption
Strong password
Security updates
Fitbark does patch certain security aspects of their apps based on periodic penetration testing by a third-party firm.
Manages vulnerabilities
Vulnerabilities are tracked and managed via an internal project management platform, and are addressed routinely by our developers. Fitbark does not offer a formal bounty program, but generally rewards those who report vulnerabilities with complimentary products or subscription offerings.
