Apple’s wide range of products has long since included more than just computers and cell phones of all kinds Apple Watch successfully on the market. The smart watches come with many useful functions that can even be used to monitor your own health. But this is exactly where a new lawsuit against the tech group comes in. He and his devices are accused of racial prejudice.
Apple Watch allegedly racist, according to lawsuit
Like Apple Insiders reported, the present case is specifically about the sensor for measuring blood oxygen in the Apple Watch. The so-called pulse oximetry is used for this. The skin is X-rayed and the light absorption is measured and then converted into a value for the oxygen supply.
This process can be influenced by the color of the skin, as this changes the translucency of the pulse oximeter used. This means that the respective device determines different and, above all, less precise values for dark-skinned people than for others. Previous adjustments in development would therefore have been necessary.
Increased risk due to incorrect readings
Plaintiff Alex Morales alleges in his lawsuit that he bought an Apple Watch expecting that the feature would provide accurate results regardless of skin color. He is suing on behalf of everyone in New York, but also in the US states of Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, Utah and Wyoming, since the appropriate laws apply there.
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The lawsuit further states that the problem with pulse oximetry with darker skin tones has been known for decades. Apparently, Apple didn’t take this into account. However, the corona pandemic would have shown that this could have potentially dangerous consequences and what, according to the lawsuit, clinical studies would have recognized: During triage or to generally adjust the oxygen content of patients, incorrect values would increase the risk of oxygen deficiency in dark-skinned people raise people.
In addition to allegations of racial bias in the Apple Watch, Morales also accuses the company of violating contractual warranties, unjust enrichment and fraud. There is no statement from Apple yet.
What: Apple Insider
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