Posted on 01/08/2017 3:36:09 AM PST by markomalley
Shh! you may want to turn down your television set because Alexa the internet-connected home assistant device may be listening.
The Amazon Echo system which does everything from getting your weather report to ordering more laundry detergent can also do some things you don’t want it to.
When it comes to answering those tough questions or getting that extra help around the house, Alexa, the voice service that powers Amazon Echo is just a voice-command away.
Meyali Sanchez helps sell the system at Best Buy and even uses it at home.
“She is kind of like my little right hand. So for example if we’re cooking we like to try new recipes, once a week we like to try something new,” she said.
Alexa adapts to speech patterns and vocabulary. She can control your music and video library, set an alarm, control the thermostat, and even turn off the lights and its keeping local retail stores busy.
The device is convenient, but it’s also raising concerns over security and privacy.
“These devices don’t recognize your specific voice and so then we have the situations where you have a guest staying or you have a child who is talking and accidentally order something because the device isn’t aware that it’s a child versus a parent,” said Stephen Cobb, senior security researcher for ESET North America.
Which is exactly what happened today during CW6 in the morning when Jim Patton and Lynda Martin were talking about a child who accidentally bought a dollhouse and four pounds of cookies
“I love the little girl, saying ‘Alexa ordered me a dollhouse,’” said Patton.
As soon as Patton said that, viewers all over San Diego started complaining their echo devices had tried to order doll houses. It’s a common problem experts say can be avoided.
“All of these devices which record the internet of things will have some sort of website control, some sort of setting, sometimes the setting is on the device that is communicating. So you need to go into these settings and look at what they are, and what you can change,” said Cobb.
Cobb says the Federal Trade Commission is already looking into voice-command devices and toys to make sure the technology is safe and secure. For now, he recommends do your research to keep your personal information controlled and protected.
“Down the road the technology will be more sophisticated where it will be able to identify certain individuals and register people can access it,” he said.
Amazon says shopping settings can be managed via its Alexa app, including turning off voice purchasing and creating a confirmation code before any order.
The company also says any “accidental” physical orders can be returned for free.
Going to Amazon’s website and entering an order is just so much WORK!
Intelligence has been selectively bred out.
And acceptance of snooping plus more than a little indoctrinated exhibitionism in play.
My wife bought me it. I NEVER remember asking for it or saying at all that I wanted it.
Last I checked, my legs and arms were working and though difficult, I’m willing to call the pizzeria myself AND answer the door.
I’m even willing to change the thermostat on my own!! Like the pioneers!
It’s still in the corner. Better to lose 50 bucks than tell her I didn’t want one of her gifts.
LOL!
The only reason I am going to order the new stick is to get the new firmware, upgraded speed and storage capability of the new stick.
I am hoping I can turn the speech part off.
Read a news article that Ford is going to put it in their vehicles later this year..
You must be old, like me.
We have the cameras blocked, too.
I received one as a gift and gave it away. The whole notion makes me nervous. I can turn on my own lights, check my alarm clock, check the weather without George Jetson style help. I recently bought Apple TV and even that makes me a little uncomfortable. Of course I’m older, and to my horror I realize I’m adopting a mindset I used to sneer at in my not so long ago youth...never had it before, don’t need it now.
I dont think you are. You likely have a cell phone, you got Apple TV, a computer, obviously :)
Not wanting something that, in my opinion, is absurd and brings laziness to new levels, is a good mindset.
IT IS great for the disabled. It has given them freedom they’ve not had in a long time, many disabled say.
I’m not disabled yet.
...For the life of me, I don’t understand why anybody would want to place a bug into his/her own home....
Ever read 1984?
It’s not just a bug, what if they go Skynet one day?
I don’t have apple tv. I have a more mundane cable like tv service. Like the pioneers. :)
Not sure I get it. Don’t you need to pay for these doll houses before they ship them? Did they give “Alexa” their credit card data to store for future orders?
"Henry, you want to take a break ...?" Oops - screech - thump!
Or ... TT Trucker using his CB; "Breaker, Breaker ..."
Negotiating homophones (words that sound the same but have different meanings) is a real pain. English is one of the worst of all the languages for this.
People usually have a credit card or bank account on file at Amazon. That way they can have one click checkout.
Exchange it for Amazon TV, you’ll be happier. The TV has Alexa available at the push of a button vs. always on and it will entertain you much better.
Note to Ford: This once and never more Ford owner gently suggests you focus on making more reliable vehicles first.
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