Quote:
Originally Posted by ApK
I didn't quote the part about the problems it was causing, that's certainly something to fix.
But you've posted more than once about your devices listening to you, and of course that topic has been in the media quite a bit, and I'm firmly convinced that MOST of the ways people discuss dealing with what legitimate concerns there are, are based in FUD, misunderstanding the technology, and media-aided self-delusion about what can and should properly be done about it.
(Note, this is purely public topic discussion. I post these comments in response to your posts not to particularly accuse you of being paranoid, but because you bring up the topic, and I like participating in these threads with you.)
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My issue with the Dot is that for its limited usefulness to me in occasionally playing music, it's not worth it to have it suddenly spouting off a response to something out of the blue, whether it's the TV or a conversation I'm having, because it thinks it was called. If it's going to listen constantly, it ought to listen properly. I don't think that's paranoid or a misunderstanding; I think it's an annoyance that I'm not willing to put up with at my minimal usage level. So I've turned it off unless I specifically want it to play music.
The Alexa hands-free on the Fire tablet is apparently being rolled out gradually, and I got the upgrade a few weeks ago, and immediately turned it off, or thought I did. It's not a feature I want or need. I assume the blue light I see at the bottom is connected to the upgrade, and it seems to come up randomly. I use the tablet a lot to play games while listening to audiobooks (on another device), and it seems to interrupt my game just when I'm on the verge of beating a level. Not important in the grand scheme of things, of course, but annoying as hell.
Re paranoia. I do have the camera covered with tape on my tablet and on my laptop. I don't use those cameras, ever, so what can it hurt? I shred all papers with any personal information too, even though it's a lot more likely that my identity will be stolen through a computer hack at some credit card company than because someone's gone through my trash. But I do not wear a tinfoil hat.
