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>> "always listen" This is somewhat correct but misleading. It's always listening for the "wake word" -- alexa or echo -- and then it processes your request. B
by deeth_starr_v 9y ago
>> "always listen"
This is somewhat correct but misleading. It's always listening for the "wake word" -- alexa or echo -- and then it processes your request. But it's not sending all conversations up to amazon. Just your alexa requests.
- cantrip 9y agoNot yet at least. Once attitudes towards privacy change further towards continual surveillance they'll be the first to flip the switch and turn it on.
- rando444 9y agoWell currently they'd have to completely rebuild the hardware. This person gave a very good explanation here: https://np.reddit.com/r/Showerthoughts/comments/7m91u9/if_google_devices_only_start_listening_once_you/drsdxe1/ https://np.reddit.com/r/Showerthoughts/comments/7m91u9/if_go...
- pavlov 9y agoThese devices will get replaced every few years anyway. Having to send out new hardware to customers is absolutely no problem for Amazon.
- woolvalley 9y agoThen by that point privacy as a selling point apple will have the homepod for sale? I have a bunch, and you only really use them for about 5 things, with the most useful thing being music.
- emodendroket 9y agoMight be pretty expensive to do that.
- deeth_starr_v 9y agoI've used the microphone hardware that Echo uses and it doesn't stream audio until the wake word is received.
- ocdtrekkie 9y agoI feel like statements like this miss the point. Most of us are fully aware of this. But that doesn't change that the device is deciding when to send audio or not... something they can change at any time, presumably even without telling customers.
- albertzeyer 9y agoJust like any other device, such as your phone, or computer, maybe also TV, etc.
- viridian 9y agoHow can my phone have updates pushed to it without my consent? Does LineageOS have some sort of backdoor that you know of?
- ocdtrekkie 9y agoDo you have Google Play Services on your LineageOS device? It's amazing what Google can push via that these days. ;) As a note, for non-rooted users, it's common for Android vendors to push mandatory updates. Both my last Android phone and tablet before I left the platform were pending 'mandatory' updates where I had to kill a process after booting to prevent them from executing.
- Retric 9y agoMy TV has no way to revive updates. So, normally you do have some control. However, this is a device that requires internet to function and is managed by them giving you zero control beyond unplugging it.
- mediocrejoker 9y agoAnecdotal but I have had an echo dot for only about 2 weeks and already it has "woken" when nobody was talking to it. It's very disconcerting, as you don't realize that it's listening as it parses some conversation that was never meant for it and then suddenly interjects with some non-sequitur. Once was when an actual person was speaking and another time was when the TV show 'The Sopranos' was playing in the room. In the latter case, I rewound the show several times and it triggered on the same phrase multiple times (and the character was not saying anything that sounded like Alexa, at least to me)
- Willamin 9y agoAny chance you remember what the phrase was? or the episode?
- Feniks 9y agoAllow me a little prediction: in the future there will be a push to have AI assistants listen to and report things like domestic disturbances.
- blacksmith_tb 9y agoThen they'd better also require that they not have mute switches like the Echo and gHome do...
- Feniks 9y agoOh don't worry those of us who don't have an Echo will get on a special watchlist. You'll give up your freedom soon enough if you can't get child custody or keep getting turned down at job interviews.
- reaperducer 9y agoIt's for your own good, citizen. Don't you feel safer now? Think of the children!