VTech

VTech was founded in Hong Kong in October 1976 by two local entrepreneurs, Allan Wong (Chi-Yun) and Stephen Leung. When the first single-chip microprocessor, the Intel 4004, became available in the early 1970s, the company saw the potential it offered for portable consumer electronics products. Wong & Leung set up a small factory in To Kwa Wan, with a US$40,000 investment and a staff of 40 people. In the first year, turnover was less than $1 million.

VTech initially focused on developing video games. In 1977, the company created its first home TV game console, a version of Pong. Since only consumers in North America and Europe could afford such items, the company targeted primarily these markets.

The United Kingdom was chosen as the first market for Pong, as Hong Kong and the UK used the same standard for television systems. In 1978, the founders introduced LED games they had developed to buyers from RadioShack in the US, which were sold under the RadioShack brand.

VTech then began to build its own brand. Starting in the early 1980s, a line of electronic games would be manufactured. VTech unveiled its first electronic learning product, called Lesson One, at the New York Toy Fair, in February 1980. It taught children basic spelling and maths. An exclusive version under the name Computron was offered to Sears, with the product being prominently advertised by Sears, in its catalogue, which was a popular shopping guide.

Next, VTech made the video game console CreatiVision. An electronic product with an external projector from French company Ludotronic was adapted by VTech and sold as the VTech ProScreen in 1984, following the release of VTech's Gamate and Variety handheld products the year prior.

VTech then branched out into personal computers, including a series of 8-bit TRS-80 competition computers named the Laser 200, 210, and 310, as well as a series of IBM PC compatibles both beginning in 1983, followed by Apple II compatible computers, beginning in 1985, including a model called Laser 128. After acquiring PC manufacturer Leading Technology of Oregon in 1992, VTech exited the personal computer market in 1997 due to tight competition.

In 1985, the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) allocated the frequency band 900 MHz to ISM (industrial, scientific, and medical) devices. Taking advantage of this, VTech began development on a cordless telephone, using the 900 MHz band, and in 1991 introduced the world's first fully digital 900 MHz cordless telephone.

In 2000, to expand its cordless phone business, VTech acquired the consumer telephone business of Lucent Technologies. The acquisition also gave VTech the exclusive right for 10 years to use the AT&T brand in conjunction with the manufacture and sale of wireline telephones and accessories in the United States and Canada. Although the acquisition increased sales of VTech's telecommunication products by 50%, it led to operating losses and write-offs. The company issued a profit warning in March 2001 and launched a broad restructuring plan. By the financial year 2002, the company had turned around the business and returned to profitability.

Electronic learning products (ELPs)

VTech was among the pioneers of the ELP industry, beginning in 1980 with a unit designed to teach children basic spelling and mathematics. Today VTech makes both individual standalone products and platform products that combine a variety of consoles with different software. Its V.Smile TV Learning System, which was launched in 2004, established what the company calls platform products as an important category within its ELPs. In 2005, the Smart Start category got the first few products under the VTech Baby brand, including V.Smile Baby (nothing to do with VTech Baby), it is the first time they used a separate brand for its infant and toddler line since Little Smart (Lörni in Germany) until 2003.

In 2007, the company picked up the rights from Studio 100 (e.g. Plop the Gnome, and Bumba) (Netherlands), Babar (France), and Caillou (Spain), in this year we released Whiz Kid Learning System and Kidizoom (in 2008 it was broadened the camera to not stop using after the age of six, due to seven and eight year olds still using Kidizooms.)

In 2009, they released another gaming console, the V.Baby, it has been released with the VTech Baby brand in Europe (except Spain which they used the V.Baby logo but uses the normal VTech logo due to V.Baby being short for VTech Baby), but it is unknown where it was released in Germany or Netherlands.

In 2011, the Winnie the Pooh movie toys were released, including Pooh Learning Phone, Pooh’s Adventure Book, and 2-in-1 Baby Activity Walker, only Pooh’s Adventure Book is a Europe exclusive. There are more non-Pooh toys released the same year, including Peek at Me Bunny, Care & Learn Teddy, Grow & Discover Music Studio, and 2-in-1 Discovery Table, Lightning McQueen Digital Camera (Pre-K and up), Team Lightning McQueen Laptop (Pre-K to K), Lightning McQueen Learn & Go (K to 1st Grade), and Lightning McQueen Learning Laptop (K to 1st Grade).

Controversies

2012 working conditions controversy

A June 2012 report from the Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights said the working conditions in the VTech factories in China failed to meet the legal standards and could be described as sweatshops. VTech strongly rejected the allegations in a statement issued on 22 June 2012.

2015 data breach

In November 2015, Lorenzo Bicchierai, writing for Vice magazine's Motherboard, reported that VTech's servers had been compromised and the corporation was victim to a data breach which exposed personal data belonging to 6.3 million individuals, including children, who signed up for or utilized services provided by the company related to several products it manufactures. Bicchierai was contacted by the unnamed attacker in late November, during the week before Thanksgiving, at which point the unnamed individual disclosed information about the security vulnerabilities with the journalist and detailed the breach.

Bicchierai then reached out to information security researcher Troy Hunt to examine data provided by the attacker to Bicchierai, and to confirm if the leak was indeed authentic and not an internet hoax. Hunt examined the information and confirmed it appeared to be authentic. Hunt then dissected the data in detail and published the findings on his website. According to Hunt, VTech's servers failed to utilize basic SSL encryption to secure the personal data in transit from the devices to VTech's servers; that VTech stored customer information in unencrypted plaintext, failed to securely hash or salt passwords.

The attack leveraged an SQL injection to gain privileged root access to VTech servers. Once privileged access was acquired, the attacker exfiltrated the data, including some 190 gigabytes of photographs of children and adults, detailed chat logs between parents and children which spanned over the course of years, and voice recordings, all unencrypted and stored in plain text. The attacker shared some 3,832 image files with the journalist for verification purposes, and some redacted photographs were published by the journalist. Commenting on the leak, the unidentified hacker

expressed their disgust with being able to so easily obtain access to such a large trove of data, saying: "Frankly, it makes me sick that I was able to get all this stuff. VTech should have the book thrown at them" and explained their rationale for going to the press was because they felt VTech would have ignored their reports and concerns.

VTech corporate security was unaware their systems had been compromised and the breach was first brought to their attention after being contacted by Bicchierai prior to the publication of the article. Upon notification, the company took a dozen or so websites and services offline.