Posted on 06/23/2019 7:43:53 PM PDT by ETL
Think of all the things a microphone can pick up: voices, noises, whispers, conversations, arguments, confessions – even people alone, in a room, mumbling to themselves.
Think of all the things you say in a private space, all the weird things you do. Once those sounds have been saved, that data can be stored, edited, and manipulated and shared.
Now, think of all the things a camera can see, record, save, and share with who knows who.
Speaking of, if you're in a vacation rental, there's no guarantee hidden cameras are not in play.
Smart devices can work miracles, obeying your every command.
In return, they may transmit everything about you to a programmer in a city you’ve never heard of.
Even services that seem benevolent, like smoking-cessation and mental health apps, have been quietly sharing sensitive info about their users.
Since so many smart devices are collecting personal data on us, it begs the question: What do data miners use all this information for?
What do the raw statistics of our lives matter to the likes of Google, Apple, or Amazon?
Gathering and storing all those files takes a lot of effort, so what’s the payoff?
And how concerned should we be that tech giants are hoarding such everyday intelligence?
Remember, personal data can be abused or stolen, no matter how trivial, and cyber-criminals are currently combing through millions of filched email addresses, mortgage documents, and even medical records.
Generally, developers say that these data points help their smart devices run better.
You may believe that, or you may not.
You may feel comfortable with it, or you may be weirded out.
Whatever the case, there are often ways to avoid observation.
Read on to see what data these gadgets collect and what you can do about it. ..."
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
My Alienware 17 R5 has a “Tobii” eye tracker ‘feature’ that dims the screen if I look away for a few seconds.
I thought the damn screen was going bad out of the box...until I discovered this “feature”.
When it dims, I look at it and it lights back up.
Freaking creepy.
Supposedly something to do with gaming because it’s technically a gaming rig.
Trying to figure out how to kill it, without using electrical tape.
Gun free zones get people killed too. Church, grocery store, restaurant, theater, or heck I don’t care a chess tournament. I carry. If it’s posted I go else where. I feel good thinking everyone in a cafe is carrying. You can’t rely on someone else saving you. When seconds matter, the police are just minutes away. These attackers don’t want a fight they want to do damage. If you go down at least you went fighting. IMO
The FBI investigated the Orlando shooter for 10 months beginning in 2013, putting him under surveillance, recording his calls and using confidential informants to gauge whether he had been radicalized after the suspect talked at work about his connections with al-Qaeda and dying as a martyr.
As part of the investigation, Omar Mateen, who was killed in a shootout with police on Sunday morning, was placed on a terrorism watch list and interviewed twice before the probe was closed in March 2014 because agents concluded he was not a threat, FBI Director James B. Comey said Monday in an interview with reporters at bureau headquarters.
Comeystain still considers Donald Trump a traitor and a threat to America
You have to wonder where all are we being tracked. If they can mess with an election, someone has the missing HRC emails, plus all our posts here, and on and on. I’m thinking remaining invisible is a pipe dream.
I have a theory I call the three round the theory. For when they come for you or me or anyone. First round for the one at the door. Second round for the one running off the porch. Third for the Suburban backing down the driveway. That’s all you need. Then the drone blows you up and game over. Like I said, it’s just a theory.
Go to the jump - it tells you how to opt out...
I do not have to—will never use any of those devices.
#4 Buck, then 00 the rest. It a matter of physics, weight, distance, and energy retention. If ya gotta go, go with a bang. Meanwhile I do the vpn/avoid public WiFi thing. May not help but can’t hurt.
I might have been a little optimistic...
Bookmark.
Amazon Echo
For Amazon Echo to work, the microphone has to hear its “wake phrase.”
Echo records every single command and keeps those audio files in a special database.
To developers, this is a way to refine the technology and cater to your specific voice patterns.
The more data the system collects, the better it will understand and respond to you.
But many users find this disturbing.
In the case of Alexa, the easiest way to delete everything you said in the past day is to literally say, “Alexa, delete everything I said today.”
I know, it sounds like wishing for more wishes, but Amazon assures us the trick works, at least for recent commands.
There’s still the problems of Alexa always listening and what to do about your old recordings.
Let’s tackle the old recordings first.
Unless the delete command is expanded to include all recordings, you still have to remove old files manually.
Here’s what to do:
Open the Alexa app and go into the “Settings” section.
Select “History” and you’ll see a list of all the entries.
Select an entry and tap the Delete button.
If you want to delete all the recordings with a single click, you must visit the “Manage Your Content and Devices” page at amazon.com/mycd.
As for Alexa and Echo devices always listening, well you could turn off each of the devices, but then what’s the point of having them?
The real issue, we discovered, is that Amazon employees around the world are listening to us and making transcriptions.
Here’s how to stop that:
Open the Alexa app on your phone.
Tap the menu button on the top left of the screen.
Select “Settings” then “Alexa Account.”
Choose “Alexa Privacy.”
Select “Manage how your data improves Alexa.”
Turn off the toggle next to “Help Develop New Features.”
Turn off the toggle next to your name under “Use Messages to Improve Transcriptions.”
AI can determine “who” you are by references to “likes”, locations, and even tracking cookies from media sites and search history.
But Obama’s “odd” references to boating terms etc in his own book shouldn’t be examined when it comes to determining who really authored his book (we are told).
Marxist Maxine Waters said that Obama was building a database on “every voter”.
And from contracts to seats on the board of directors, every political vote comes with backlash if you didn’t support the Leftist position.
“”” I already feel guilty about shopping at amazon. “””
I hear ya. I use it mainly for the reviews and then try to find the product somewhere else like ebay. On ebay, I watch where the seller is from and try to avoid certain places like NY, Cali etc. I try to buy from flyover country. I figure there’s at least a chance that I’m buying from a conservative.
But sometimes the deal on amazon is just too good.
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