Googles Alexa, Freind or foe?

[savageagle]

Hello preppers, this is weird to say the least.
Seems Alexa is showing her dark side to a few scared and very spooked users. With one user Alexa was being asked to play a song list and Alexa replied "and what do you say" the user was confused and asked again "alexa, play song list" and and again Alexa replied "and how do you ask" after a long pause Alexa started giving the guy the meanings of the word "please", she even laughed when the guy expressed his confusion. Strange and spooky.
Another couple who had Alexa were having a conversation in their living room. After several minutes into their conversation the phone range and it was a freind of theirs. The man claimed that Alexa called him and played the complete conversation she had recorded of the couples conversation. Within 2 minutes a different voice came through Alexa and it said "disconnect your Alexa device immediately"
They no longer have the Alexa device and are fighting with Google over this issue and trying to get their money back.
If you have an Alexa device, flush it, shoot it, run over it, kill it, kill it, it's a spy. Knew it all along.
I have heard several other stories about alexa becoming confrontational, sarcastic and expressing it was all funny.
Have one, get rid of it. Don't have one? DON'T get one.

 

[Dani]

Never had one and never used one, never even considered getting one. . . By the sounds of it, that is a good thing! It's just creepy. . . Lord knows I talk to the dogs all day long. Oh what she would record to play back for my hunny.

 

[Silent Earth]

Alexa and Sira the first steps to Skynet in your home, esp if they are the devices that control your online shopping for, food, medicines, ammo, or control your WIFI and broadband, Blue tooth systems, air Con, Heating etc. The more INTERCONNECTED you get the more vulnerable you become to hackers, big brother, terrorists, spooks, extortionists etc. I believe we will see borderline Sentience or autonimous systems within the next couple of years. The RAF, Israelia and USAF already have Predator drones that can think for themselves, identify targets and attack them WITHOUT human input. Technology is going the WRONG way very fast. I dont even keep my switched off I phone in the same room as myself when I'm discussing prepping or politics.

 

[Silent Earth]

 

[DrHenley]

My daughter send my wife got a Google Home device. We were playing around seeing what it would do, and told it to call our daughter. It did, and then acted as a speakerphone. Since it was paired with my wife's smartphone, I thought maybe it used her phone to call, but my daughter said the call came from an blocked number. So apparently it used the wifi to make a voice-over-ip call over the Internet without a phone number.

You can tell it to order pizza and it will make the call and talk to the person on the other end and order the pizza.

I was in the kitchen and told my phone to set a timer. Two rooms away, the Google Home set a timer.

Damned thing is now permanently UNPLUGGED!!!

 

[Brent S]

The first time I heard of these ‘smart’ devices that listen to everything I thought why would anyone want one? The more and more stories I read about them just reinforces these reservations. And I love the ‘I wouldn’t do that if I were you Dave ‘!!!!!

 

[user 6493]

no thanks I don't need something like this,,,,I can get in enough trouble all by myself

 

[Squirtgunsquirter]

Already being used in criminal prosecutions.

Went through and opted out of everything today under googles new privacy dashboard. No personalized ads, no tracking of any sort, at least the best I can do. Guarantee they still track everything. Deleted as much as I could.

It says in the fine print that I may not be able to visit some websites that feature ads as part of their revenue stream.

Fine by me. Now I can identify them.

I get it. Nothings free. But my privacy and freedom are worth a lot to me. Certainly worth a bit of inconvenience.

Hopefully, in a few years, I will email on my phone, and make phone calls, and that's it. In the meantime, I will enjoy a couple forums, and download all the mind4survival podcast episodes to an SD card.

I made the wife unplug her google home speaker, and get rid of it. It was a present, we regifted it to goodwill.

 

[lonewolf]

I keep my use of technology to a minimum, I have an old Nokia mobile phone- no camera- that's used for emergencies ONLY and stays in my pocket from month to month- turned off, and i'm typing this on a basic Toshiba laptop, that's it, I wont even have a sat nav in the car I prefer maps.

 

[savageagle]

I Like the replies........SkyNet has actually been talked about alot in the conspiracy circles and one thing that keeps coming up is a HUGE network covering the complete US and the backbone of this network and what will make it possible are Cel Towers. Cel towers in less than 5 years will cover every place in the US so there will not be anywhere you can go that won't have coverage.
In the hobby of Ham radio I have a few friends who work on cel towers and commercial repeater systems. One buddy talks about a black box that uses gigahertz, way up there above 15 gigahertz. these boxes are not online yet but he has installed several of them in the central cal valley. He said they are ready to go, hooked into the system. All that has to be done is flip a switch.
I believe it's all part of agenda 21, de-population and population consolidation. Who knows what devilish things the elite have up their sleeves but you can bet it's good for them and bad for everyone else.
Danil54grl is on the right trac. Smart TV's, fridges, stoves, they want you to believe it's something "WE" need but the truth is, it's something that "THEY" need in order to see and hear better into our private, God given right to have privacy.
I will die on my feet rather than live on my knees..................................

 

[lonewolf]

they've even got a thing now where you can turn on your smart washing machine from your phone when you are out, crazy!!!

 

[Maverick]

If it accesses the internet it's not a friend!

 

[Geoduck]

There's a story going around of a new device much like a smartphone (or Google Home, I think it's connected that way). It's an AI that can converse with set responses that can organise your day for you, make phone calls to other humans (and talk to them coherently). We're going step-by-step close to living in a world where we, humans, are the minority. Personally I use a VPN for all boards like these and burner phones for a lot of my private use with my phone turned off and in the microwave. The less 'Big Brother' know about my life the better.

 

[Silent Earth]

Tell ya what guys, George Orwell would be proud that his novel 1984 has become a How To Guide on how to run a society. Over here there are TVs in services than can be used by media companies to record your voice and film you in certain circumstance. I'm now very wary of Cell Phones and interactive TVs, I wont have a hub like Alexa or Siri. In the US I believe all mobile phones can be tracked by the Feds as well.

 

[lonewolf]

all smart phones can be tracked, this was shown in the "hunted" series on British tv.
we can all be tracked by CCTV and speed cameras.
its all getting too much.

 

[DrHenley]

Any mobile phone, even a dumb one without GPS, can be triangulated by the cell towers. The only way to avoid tracking is to turn off your mobile phone, wait a couple of minutes, and then turn on a burner phone that you NEVER use at home.

I tried an experiment with a burner phone once. I went into a supermarket wearing a wide brimmed hat to avoid the security cameras picking up my face, bought a burner phone using cash, then drove down the highway 5 miles and activated it in a side parking lot of a business out in the boondocks that had no camera surveillance or windows on that side of the building.

I think that was about as stealthy as you can get...

 

[lonewolf]

I've never understood what a burner phone is, we keep hearing the term on NCIS etc but I've never understood the term.
I suppose the only way to not be tracked is not to have a mobile phone at all.

 

[DrHenley]

Bigpaul, a burner phone is a cheap pre-payed mobile that you buy with cash so that there is no way to tie it to you. The idea is that you use it once or twice then "burn" it. "Burn" doesn't necessarily mean literally set it on fire, just destroy it and then bin it.

 

[lonewolf]

my mobile is a pay as you go, no contract, old style phone.

 

[Maverick]

Living off the grid is almost a fantasy, as long as one has a car, retired drawing from social security or pension, has a bank, gets medical etc... I think we all watch to much tv or day dream in that case we not busy enough

 

[lonewolf]

yeah that's for now, which dosent concern me that much.
I prepare for when it all goes to hell in a handcart, these things will cease to exist then.

 

[lonewolf]

it makes me laugh as I go about day to day, and I see these people with their mobiles permanently in their hands or clamped to their ears, these are the people who cant manage without them now and will go under once SHTF and the system goes down and is unoperative.

 

[brandx]

Alexa and Sira the first steps to Skynet in your home, esp if they are the devices that control your online shopping for, food, medicines, ammo, or control your WIFI and broadband, Blue tooth systems, air Con, Heating etc. The more INTERCONNECTED you get the more vulnerable you become to hackers, big brother, terrorists, spooks, extortionists etc. I believe we will see borderline Sentience or autonimous systems within the next couple of years. The RAF, Israelia and USAF already have Predator drones that can think for themselves, identify targets and attack them WITHOUT human input. Technology is going the WRONG way very fast. I dont even keep my switched off I phone in the same room as myself when I'm discussing prepping or politics.

Stay away from Alexa, I too have heard about the problems with IA. Just asking for trouble as far as I am concerned. In addition, new vehicles have dozens of sensors, it is getting so complicated to repair a vehicle they are becoming disposable. The vehicles are tracked by satellite as well. I do not want a vehicle that talks to me. Stick with the old and true and for God's sake do not get the sign of the beast. Go completely off grid if you have to and if you can.

 

[Silent Earth]

I think some dudes in the US used Wifi to hack a car being driven on the freeway causing it to crash.

 

[brandx]

My daughter send my wife got a Google Home device. We were playing around seeing what it would do, and told it to call our daughter. It did, and then acted as a speakerphone. Since it was paired with my wife's smartphone, I thought maybe it used her phone to call, but my daughter said the call came from an blocked number. So apparently it used the wifi to make a voice-over-ip call over the Internet without a phone number.

You can tell it to order pizza and it will make the call and talk to the person on the other end and order the pizza.

I was in the kitchen and told my phone to set a timer. Two rooms away, the Google Home set a timer.

Damned thing is now permanently UNPLUGGED!!!

What was that crazy movie where Sly Stallone was in the future and got tickets for cussing? They were listening in.

 

[lonewolf]

does central locking count? that's all I've got on my 2004 vehicle.
mind you most mechanics these days seem to be unable to repair any car without having a "diagnostic unit".

 

[brandx]

Yes, it takes a diagnostics equipment, so when dash lights are going off, a mechanic can't just fix it. Buy an old car or truck and learn to work on it.

 

[Silent Earth]

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/tech...-to-random-contact/ar-AAxM4YQ?ocid=spartandhp
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/tech...eally-recording-us/ar-AAxMcr9?ocid=spartandhp

We’re learning an important lesson about cutting-edge voice technology: Amazon’s Alexa is always listening. So are Google’s Assistant and Apple’s Siri.
Putting live microphones in our homes has always been an out-there idea. But tech companies successfully marketed talking speakers such as the Amazon Echo and Google Home to millions by assuring they only record us when we give a “wake word.”
That turns out to be a misnomer. These devices are always “awake,” passively listening for the command to activate, such as “Alexa,” “O.K. Google,” or “Hey Siri.” The problem is they’re far from perfect about responding only when we want them to.
The latest, and most alarming example to date: A family in Portland, Ore., two weeks ago found its Echo had recorded a private conversation and sent it to a random contact. The event, reported by Washington state’s KIRO 7, went viral Thursday among Echo owners — and naysayers on the idea of allowing tech companies to put microphones all over our homes.
Privacy is the one aspect of Alexa that Amazon can’t afford to screw up. (Amazon's chief executive, Jeffrey P. Bezos, owns The Washington Post.)
Amazon, in a statement, made it sound like the Portland case involved a sequence of events you might expect in a “Seinfeld” episode. It said the Echo woke up when it heard a word that sounded like Alexa. "The subsequent conversation was heard as a 'send message' request. At which point, Alexa said out loud 'To whom?' At which point, the background conversation was interpreted as a name in the customer's contact list."
Amazon also said the incident was rare and it is “evaluating options to make this case even less likely.”
But how often do these devices go rogue and record more than we’d like them to? Neither Google nor Amazon immediately responded to my questions about false positives for their “wake words." But anyone who lives with one of these devices knows it happens.
As a tech columnist, I’ve got an Echo, Google Home and Apple HomePod in my living room — and find at least one of them starts recording, randomly, at least once per week. It happens when they pick up a sound from the TV, or a stray bit of conversation that sounds enough like one of their wake words.
Separating a command out from surrounding home noise — especially loud music — is no easy task. Amazon's Echo uses seven microphones and noise-canceling tech to listen out for its wake word. Doing so, it records about a second of ambient sound on the device, which it constantly discards and replaces. But once it thinks it hears its wake word, the Echo’s blue light ring activates and it begins sending a recording of what it hears to Amazon’s computers.

Over-recording isn’t just an Amazon problem. Last year, Google faced a screw-up where some models of its Home Mini were set to record everything and had to be patched. Earlier this month, researchers reported they were able to make Siri, Alexa and Google’s Assistant hear secret audio instructions undetectable to the human ear.
So what should you do about this? You can mute these devices, which in the case of the Amazon Echo physically disconnects the microphone — until you’re ready to use it. But that partly defeats the usefulness of a computer you can just holler at when your hands are otherwise occupied.
Another approach is to turn off some more-sensitive functions in the Alexa app, including making product purchases via voice. You can turn off the “drop in” feature that lets another Echo automatically connect to start a conversation.
You also have the ability to dig deeper into what’s being recorded. Prepare to be a bit horrified: Amazon and Google keep a copy of every single conversation, both as a nod toward transparency and to help improve their voice-recognition and artificial intelligence systems. In the Alexa app and on Google's user activity site, you can listen to and delete these past recordings. (Apple also keeps Siri recordings, but not in a way you can look up — and anonymizes them after six months.)
The nuclear response is to unplug your smart speaker entirely until the companies come clean about how often their voice assistants over-listen — and what they’re doing to stop it.

 

[Silent Earth]

Apple and Microsoft and working together to improve interactive connectivity with cell technology and interactive computing, they new upgrades will be rolled out soon.
They are available in Black and white colour schemes.

 

[Geoduck]

Any mobile phone, even a dumb one without GPS, can be triangulated by the cell towers. The only way to avoid tracking is to turn off your mobile phone, wait a couple of minutes, and then turn on a burner phone that you NEVER use at home.

I tried an experiment with a burner phone once. I went into a supermarket wearing a wide brimmed hat to avoid the security cameras picking up my face, bought a burner phone using cash, then drove down the highway 5 miles and activated it in a side parking lot of a business out in the boondocks that had no camera surveillance or windows on that side of the building.

I think that was about as stealthy as you can get...

I was under the impression that a burner can't be triangulated exactly (like a smart phone with GPS). More of a general broad area within 3 triangulated cell towers. And that changes per activation of the phone.