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45Doll

Alexa Is Apparently Recording You

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Not all the time. But whenever 'she's' triggered. This has seemed intuitively obvious to me since these types of devices were first introduced. Of course companies denied this, but did anyone really think they could resist the goldmine of marketing information that would be available by listening in all the time? I didn't.

Of course we could theorize what other purposes this might serve. But I put this topic in this thread just to alert those of you who may have one. If the chat needs to go off the rails I'll open a thread in the 2A Lounge.

This guy listened to four years of archived recordings. When we go to our friends' house that has one, we ask them to unplug it. And we want to see it. Because we frequently discuss topics that are no on else's business.

Especially Jeff Bezos.

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Again?  There was a thing where Alexa messaged a private convo to a friend on the phone.

 

but yesbin any case, Google, Siri, and Alexa all record everything.... how else do they pick up “hey Siri”

they are constantly monitoring. 

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And that is why i haven't one, single, solitary device of that nature in my house, and I really don't need one.  I presently don't have Wifi in the house, either. All my devices are wired with wired switches and routers.  I won't completely keep Wifi off the table if there's something I really need it for but, for now, all I need to do, I can do wired.  

 

 

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By definition anything “voice activated” is always monitoring.  The key question is how big a buffer and where in the chain does it exist. The “Alexa” trigger is short enough it could be local to the device and not sent to the mothership. Most voice data after that must be sent up since the linguistic parsing is more complex. 

Whether recorded and retained.. well maybe/probably. 

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2 hours ago, Bklynracer said:

It's not just those devices, Also cell phones, smart TV's, voice activated remotes, even the smart refrigerators you can talk to and order groceries, voice activated dashboards in cars.

I have an old(er) smart phone (a GS5...  which I'll need to replace soon), but I do not have a smart TV with a mic (although it does have Internet access).  I have no voice activated anything else.   I don't see the need for the smart frig and any/all other IOT devices.  If I can't remember what I need to buy at the grocery store, I'm in real, bad shape. And I will not be getting any of those things, anytime soon.

 

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3 hours ago, Maksim said:

but yesbin any case, Google, Siri, and Alexa all record everything.... how else do they pick up “hey Siri”

they are constantly monitoring. 

I have nothing voice activated in my home.   On IOS devices, under 'Settings', in the "Siri and Search' menu, there is a slider for 'Listen for ""Hey Siri!"'    Turn that off.   You can still activate Siri by pushing the home button.

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3 hours ago, 45Doll said:

Not all the time.

Right...Honestly, I'd say it's more likely they record everything than not. Just like all those apps we download on our phone. Apps for flashlights that need permissions to phone calls, video, photos, etc.

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3 hours ago, Bklynracer said:

It's not just those devices, Also cell phones,

Definitely cell phones, my son has had multiple experiences where ads pop up on his Facebook feed for items he was talking about earlier in the day. One example, we were in Costco looking and talking about a backyard  play gym they had on display, and where he could put one in his yard. His phone was in his pocket. He never searched on his phone for any information on play gyms.

Later on that day, when he checked his Facebook page, an ad popped up with almost the same exact play gym to purchase.

He's told me this has happened multiple times with other rare products that he knows he was talking to someone about, but never actually searched them on his phone or computer.

Yep, all those devices have ears...

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15 hours ago, HBecwithFn7 said:

And that is why i haven't one, single, solitary device of that nature in my house, and I really don't need one.  I presently don't have Wifi in the house, either. All my devices are wired with wired switches and routers.  I won't completely keep Wifi off the table if there's something I really need it for but, for now, all I need to do, I can do wired.  

 

 

do you have a smart phone?

also....when i said this....i was called paranoid. my aunt and cousin both have them, and they love them.

 

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2 hours ago, 124gr9mm said:

I'm not a conspiracy theorist by any stretch, but I won't allow one of those devices in my home. 

No one in the family owns a Smart phone or has installed any apps on them?

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46 minutes ago, 1LtCAP said:

do you have a smart phone?

also....when i said this....i was called paranoid. my aunt and cousin both have them, and they love them.

 

I do have a GS5. I don't ever turn on "voice command" mode.   But I will be needing to get a new one shortly (probably a GS10).     Otherwise, nada....  I'm not concerned with the GS5 in re: the "paranoia" context, and I'll vet whatever replaces it and handle it accordingly (i.e. power down if I have to...  but I don't think I'll have to).

 

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4 minutes ago, HBecwithFn7 said:

I'm not concerned with the GS5 in re: the "paranoia" context, and I'll vet whatever replaces it and handle it accordingly (i.e. power down if I have to... 

It's not the phone itself that's doing all the snooping, it's the apps that are loaded on it. NOBODY reads the permissions they give an app and what they allow it to access, because those awesome apps are FREE!!! (You do know WHY they are FREE, right?) Because YOU are the product being sold off.

That's always why Alexa devices are so cheap, so Amazon get get them into more places and start harvesting and selling off all the data they collect...

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1 minute ago, Sniper said:

It's not the phone itself that's doing all the snooping, it's the apps that are loaded on it. NOBODY reads the permissions they give an app and what they allow it to access, because those awesome apps are FREE!!! (You do know WHY they are FREE, right?) Becasue YOU are the product being sold off.

In that case, no sweat... I do read the permission requests and deny what I need to. if the app can't install or function as a result of the denial, then "too bad... so sorry..."  No app will gain access to the microphone or cameras.  In general I install only what's necessary to install, and nothing else (eg. my home banking app, my home security app), things like that. If they're snooping, then maybe I do have an issue or two to resolve, but I don't think so.

 

 

 

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35 minutes ago, Sniper said:

It's not the phone itself that's doing all the snooping, it's the apps that are loaded on it. NOBODY reads the permissions they give an app and what they allow it to access, because those awesome apps are FREE!!! (You do know WHY they are FREE, right?) Because YOU are the product being sold off.

Some years ago, there was a website that did independent reviews of hundreds and hundreds of apps, assigning letter grades based on how secure they were with regards to snooping and reporting back personal info.   I'd periodically go through my phone and delete anything with a grade lower than B.   But I can't find the website today (don't recall the name, and apparently never bookmarked it).   I wonder if it got sued out of existence by makers of shady apps.

 

 

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6 hours ago, HBecwithFn7 said:

I do have a GS5. I don't ever turn on "voice command" mode.   But I will be needing to get a new one shortly (probably a GS10).     Otherwise, nada....  I'm not concerned with the GS5 in re: the "paranoia" context, and I'll vet whatever replaces it and handle it accordingly (i.e. power down if I have to...  but I don't think I'll have to).

FYI, if any app has malware, turning off your phone might not be enough. There's malware out there that can turn on your phone, turn on your camera, record sound through your speaker without a single visual difference.

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24 minutes ago, Greenday said:

FYI, if any app has malware, turning off your phone might not be enough. There's malware out there that can turn on your phone, turn on your camera, record sound through your speaker without a single visual difference.

Well, we'll see.  I'm not one to download a bunch of apps... only the ones I need (mobile banking, home security.... etc.).  I also have Malwarebytes loaded on my phone as well. 

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6 hours ago, Greenday said:

 There's malware out there that can turn on your phone, turn on your camera, record sound through your speaker without a single visual difference.

And there are apps that people voluntarily load on their phones and allow that. Why would this popular app, where you're posting selfies, need access to all these functions on your phone?

permissions_facebook_mobile_play_ss-1003

 

Sadly, the "sheep" give ALL their personal information to some unknown organization, just so they can keep in contact with their "friends" on a "FREE" app... It's so screwed up, that people deserve the screwing that they get.

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As much as i think its amazing technology i refuse to have this in my house or store..

Iv always been concerned with being recorded and or Spied on...

Just another example of giving our freedoms away to the masters of the universe.

 

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3 hours ago, remixer said:

As much as i think its amazing technology i refuse to have this in my house or store..

Do you carry a current cell phone? What apps are installed on it?

Here's another popular app, a FREE flashlight app. Everyone has one on their phone. Can anyone tell me why a flashlight app needs access to all these areas of your phone to turn on a light???????

Flashlight-Permissions-1.jpg

Read that last line in the permissions "may AUTOMATICALLY add capabilities", like AFTER you have installed it...  Concerned yet??

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42 minutes ago, remixer said:

I would never use that app.... I do have some apps but i restrict them...

Location is only open to my GPS app.

I allow no access to Cam,Mic, Contacts, Location etc etc on any app.

The problem is, the MAJORITY of people who download these apps NEVER read the permissions they give them, just hit OK and move on. Then they wonder how all their personal information gets siphoned off.

How ANYONE can stick a Echo, Google Home, Facebook Portal or any similar device in their homes and "think" that ALL their personal information ISN'T being siphoned off, is insane!!!

Then, for the icing on the cake, they do all their personal banking, legal matters, etc. on FREE email accounts like Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail and a bunch of others, then wonder why their privacy and financial information gets compromised...  idiots never sleep...

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On 5/7/2019 at 10:56 AM, HBecwithFn7 said:

I do have a GS5. I don't ever turn on "voice command" mode.   But I will be needing to get a new one shortly (probably a GS10).     Otherwise, nada....  I'm not concerned with the GS5 in re: the "paranoia" context, and I'll vet whatever replaces it and handle it accordingly (i.e. power down if I have to...  but I don't think I'll have to).

 

next question would be whether or not you use farcebook messenger or do the interweb through it? 'cause many aps will turn the mic on/of at will.

also, turning off your phone doesn't stop it from being tracked.

 

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also also........you can still be tracked relatively accurately with th gps turned off. these things are constantly talking to towers. 1 tower, they can track ya fairly close. 2 towers, they  can track ya kinda scary close. three towers, and they'll have ya just as accurately as if your gps was on.

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5 minutes ago, 1LtCAP said:

next question would be whether or not you use farcebook messenger or do the interweb through it? 'cause many aps will turn the mic on/of at will.

also, turning off your phone doesn't stop it from being tracked.

 

No, I don't do farcebook.   I have an account, but I keep it locked down with no content and no activity. I almost never log into it.  And I certainly don't do Interweb through it.

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On 5/6/2019 at 9:20 PM, Sniper said:

Definitely cell phones, my son has had multiple experiences where ads pop up on his Facebook feed for items he was talking about earlier in the day. One example, we were in Costco looking and talking about a backyard  play gym they had on display, and where he could put one in his yard. His phone was in his pocket. He never searched on his phone for any information on play gyms.

Later on that day, when he checked his Facebook page, an ad popped up with almost the same exact play gym to purchase.

He's told me this has happened multiple times with other rare products that he knows he was talking to someone about, but never actually searched them on his phone or computer.

Yep, all those devices have ears...

I don't use voice activation, but I have seen my watched ebay items show up on my facebook page.  I attrbute that to Google chrome and me not deleting my search history.

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On 5/7/2019 at 8:49 AM, 124gr9mm said:

I'm not a conspiracy theorist by any stretch, but I won't allow one of those devices in my home. 

I also won't allow my family to submit to "free DNA" testing programs.

 

The porn habits I don't care about... the DNA services... now that is quite scary.

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