Device and method for controlling communication of information

An electronic device is provided that includes a housing that has a sensor mounting panel, and first and second sensors mounted in the housing and oriented to extend through the sensor mounting panel to face an environment of interest. The electronic device is operable to change an operating state, of the first sensor, between first, second and third operating states. The first operating state represents a network sharing state in which the first type of information collected by the first sensor is shared with the network resource through the communications interface. The second operating state represents a local state in which the first type of information is maintained locally on, and is solely accessible to, the one or more processors of the electronic device and is not shared with the network resource.