Surprise! (not really)

article

court order

Murder is terrible and I hope whomever is responsible is caught and found guilty.

From the article - not only does Amazon record whatever follows the Echo's wake word - it sometimes picks up other fragments and records them, too, and it's all this data gathered over a particular two day period that prosecutors hope will reveal clues.

Also, apparently, it isn't the first time. There was another case in Arkansas where these records were used in a case.

Just in case you thought it wasn't listening or this wasn't possible...

I keep telling people this and I get that "yeah okey dokey' look from people like I'm crazy. My sister and her kids have it all over their house as does my sons wife. I point to news articles like this and then the response usually is "I don't care they can listen to me all they want I'm not doing anything" Then I give them that "yeah okey dokey if you're fine with that" look.

quote:

Originally posted by lastmanstanding:
I keep telling people this and I get that "yeah okey dokey' look from people like I'm crazy. My sister and her kids have it all over their house as does my sons wife. I point to news articles like this and then the response usually is "I don't care they can listen to me all they want I'm not doing anything" Then I give them that "yeah okey dokey if you're fine with that" look.

Hell will freeze over before there's one in my house. Wife is in full agreement.

It wasn't that long ago when people valued their privacy above most things. Now they willingly put listening devices in their own homes and simply shrug off those privacy concerns like good little Oceanians.

And yet people will keep buying these things and put them in their homes.

Every day, people are being slowly desensitized to the danger of intrusion into the privacy of their daily lives. Software that tracks what we look at and sends online advertisements to that effect. Doctors offices asking if we have guns in the household. Electronic “helpers” like Alexa and Siri that eavesdrop and record our minutiae.

One day very soon, the combined government/big business conglomerate will intrude into every single aspect of our lives. It’s frightening how far we’ve let them get so far with relatively little pushback.

1984 just took a bit longer to get here than originally estimated.

quote:

Originally posted by 64dodge:
1984 just took a bit longer to get here than originally estimated.

And was voluntary.

quote:

Originally posted by PeteF:
And was voluntary.

When has the masses’ giving up their rights not been voluntary? They only start to object (if at all) when it’s too late.

I'll never have one of those devices, but I worry about my phones and laptops recording me when I don't want the mics to be on. There are definitely folks out there who can make that happen, if not legally. I'm sure the NSA has the tech to do anything we can imagine, but they'd not be able to use it in any kind of legal case without the cops getting a warrants and doing it the old fashioned way.

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
Every day, people are being slowly desensitized to the danger of intrusion into the privacy of their daily lives. Software that tracks what we look at and sends online advertisements to that effect. Doctors offices asking if we have guns in the household. Electronic “helpers” like Alexa and Siri that eavesdrop and record our minutiae.

One day very soon, the combined government/big business conglomerate will intrude into every single aspect of our lives. It’s frightening how far we’ve let them get so far with relatively little pushback.

It started with My Space and people discovering social media and how they could use it to promote themselves on a social media stage. Every mundane aspect of their lives could be shared. What they had for dinner, what movie they watched, what time they went to bed. Then Face Book kicked the door open and you had to have more "friends" on social media then your other friends. So you had to share more things to become a more popular social mediaite.

People will share anything about their lives whether you want to know it or not. They will actually welcome any clandestine intrusion on their life.

quote:

Originally posted by Rick Lee:
I'll never have one of those devices, but I worry about my phones and laptops recording me when I don't want the mics to be on. There are definitely folks out there who can make that happen, if not legally. I'm sure the NSA has the tech to do anything we can imagine, but they'd not be able to use it in any kind of legal case without the cops getting a warrants and doing it the old fashioned way.

At least on my tablet, I keep tape over the mic and camera. Everyone that sees the tape looks at me a little weird as if I'm overly paranoid. That certainly may be true but so be it.

My phone is a different matter. It remains unmolested as far as applying tape to it. I haven't reached that level of paranoia yet.

What the hell is Cortana? It popped up after I reinstalled Skype. I guess it is a type of Echo and I tried to delete it, but I could only deactivate it.

Any help?

I'll have to ask it if this is considered a high-jack of the this thread.

Thanks and take care.

.

quote:

Originally posted by Rick Lee:
I'll never have one of those devices, but I worry about my phones and laptops recording me when I don't want the mics to be on. There are definitely folks out there who can make that happen, if not legally. I'm sure the NSA has the tech to do anything we can imagine, but they'd not be able to use it in any kind of legal case without the cops getting a warrants and doing it the old fashioned way.

What is a little scary, when my wife and I have been in the car talking about a certain product 15 minutes later it shows up as an add on her face book page. I know this has happened to other people I know. I keep tape over the camera on my computer after I saw a news report how it can be turned on by hackers with out you knowing.

quote:

Originally posted by redleg2/9:
What the hell is Cortana? It popped up after I reinstalled Skype. I guess it is a type of Echo and I tried to delete it, but I could only deactivate it.

Any help?

I'll have to ask it if this is considered a high-jack of the this thread.

Thanks and take care.

.

I think cortana is microsoft's version of siri.

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:
It wasn't that long ago when people valued their privacy above most things. Now they willingly put listening devices in their own homes and simply shrug off those privacy concerns like good little Oceanians.

Haven't you heard? We're fighting a war against Eurasia! Or is it Eastasia?

I said that years ago about OnStar.

We got some Google home mini speakers when we bought our networked sprinkler controller and Nest thermostat as part of a bundle. We have two and I have been testing them for a bit. They seem to sit idle for the most part but I do wonder how much they listen as every so often something will happen and one speaker will start responding to shit we didn't ask. I get the privacy concerns and think they're real.

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:

At least on my tablet, I keep tape over the mic and camera. Everyone that sees the tape looks at me a little weird as if I'm overly paranoid. That certainly may be true but so be it.

My phone is a different matter. It remains unmolested as far as applying tape to it. I haven't reached that level of paranoia yet.

You're wearing a selective tinfoil hat, then. Your phone can just as easily be a listening and watching device.