Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham44
...whatever it picks up is something you are saying in public so therefore you can't reasonably expect privacy...
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If I am talking to someone alone, separate from others, even if it is in a publicly accessible area - say a city park for example - I certainly expect that conversation to be private. Don't you?
Years ago, I had banned Alexa from my home. Same thinking as you and others. But then I started thinking a little harder - what do I say around my house that is sensitive? I don't go about spouting off my social security number, logins and passwords, and stuff like that. And I thought more about what exactly would be transferred over the internet. And I came to the conclusion that no, Alexa is not listening and transmitting all the time. It is paranoid to believe that. Yes, she will transmit over the internet when you wake up the device and ask it something. But most people would know not to wake up the device and tell it their social security number. Just like those same people would know not to type in and do a Google search on their social security number. When interacting with Alexa and having conversations transmitted over the internet (in voice or transcribed form), the majority of people are probably asking about the weather, the time, setting wake up alarms, asking how long to cook a pot roast, and mundane things like that. If you're planning on talking with Alexa about more sensitive stuff than that, I agree, you might want to re-think getting an Alexa device.
Anyway, that's my personal decision. And this decision to finally own Alexa devices was made after many years of banning them myself. I was exactly where you are now at one time in the past. I don't know if where I am now is better or worse than back then, but it's where I am now. I guess Amazon just gets to know that I wasn't aware of how long to cook a pot roast in my Instant Pot a few days ago. I hope them now knowing that I had to ask that question benefits them in some way. The answer is 22.5 minutes per pound, set at high pressure, BTW. Alexa told me that is what the Instant Pot company recommends for large cuts of beef. (IMHO, I have now exposed my lack of knowledge on pressure cooker pot roast cooking to a wider audience in this MobileRead post than Alexa will ever do.)
I don't discount people wanting to protect their privacy. I am the same. But the often stated warning that "Alexa is listening all the time and transmitting everything over the internet" is just a false attempt to spread FUD. Although the people spreading it are probably not malicious and are most likely where they are because they fell for the FUD themselves. Like I said, I was there at one time myself, so I understand the thinking 100%.