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maybe, my meaning is not coming across the keyboard
alexa or any one of a similar type of devise, is always WAITING on the activation code...always listening FOR THE CODE, otherwise, she/it is NOT listening in on your conversation, and certainly not butting into it either
alexa is NOT recording any part of a conversation that she was not invited/activated into
I never said she was not listening at all, what I have said is, if not activated, she is not listening to your complete conversation.
there is a big difference between waiting(listening) for an activation code for converse/action, and just listening in on a conversation as being a buttinski
You are trying to convince yourself that Alexa is not listening until you say her name and then she listens.
LOL..."waiting listening" doesn't count ?
You used the systems I maintained. That's the difference. You wrote software. I had access to every byte stored in or transmitted through the main clearinghouse of the 3rd largest bank in California, and I wasn't even an employee. You're a consumer. I'm an administrator. Completely different mindset and if, after 20 years in the field, you don't get what that difference is, I won't be able to explain it to you. I don't care if you're impressed or not. It is what it is.
Don't worry I've seen enough washed up system admins thinking that referencing a career that peaked back when they used their bonus money to buy a new VCR talking about how glorious their power was. I think we can definitely agree that neither one of us is impressed by the others' career, the difference you're the one bragging about your privs back in the day as if it is a tech thread trump card, I'm pointing out mine to tell you I see through right through you.
maybe, my meaning is not coming across the keyboard
alexa or any one of a similar type of devise, is always WAITING on the activation code...always listening FOR THE CODE, otherwise, she/it is NOT listening in on your conversation, and certainly not butting into it either
alexa is NOT recording any part of a conversation that she was not invited/activated into
I never said she was not listening at all, what I have said is, if not activated, she is not listening to your complete conversation.
there is a big difference between waiting(listening) for an activation code for converse/action, and just listening in on a conversation as being a buttinski
OK, how about this:
A voice agent works by continuously "listening" for it's activation phrase. Anything said that does not contain the activation phrase is subsequently "ignored" (maybe or maybe not, let's assume it actually is ignored). Once it "hears" the activation phrase, it now attempts to "understand" what is subsequently said as it's now listening for a command. If the "command" is something it thinks it can accomplish, it will execute on it, if not, then it will ignore and/or ask for clarification and/or upload what it thought was the phrase (and any context before/after) to help improve the service.
The crux of this thread is that:
A) the devices are ALWAYS listening
B) what actually gets "stored" and where it gets stored to (on device or on service) is the primary area of concern
C) if used simply for service improvement, then there isn't as big of a problem. The concern however is that it can/will be used for "other" purposes
D) without snooping on the devices network traffic, we can only assume/trust what the manufacturers are telling us. You either "trust" them or you don't.
It's far more complex and nuanced than a simple thread on CD could ever possibly hope to delve into (e.g. is anonymization and/or aggregation adequate).
There seems to be two approaches among tech people: One group who'll have their entire home wired to the nth degree and are trying to find a cloud-enabled robot to take out the trash. And the other group who, to steal a phrase, "keepa gun ready to shoot their printer if it makes a wrong noise".
Blue painter's tape over the laptop's camera. Dressed in pixelated camo clothing in case that blue light over the fridge's ice dispenser is actually a camera. Ukrainian speed metal at full volume in case that bastard printer is making a side-channel attack by listening to the beat of my keystrokes on the laptop. Tinfoil over everything. Every. Thing.
How can the bolded be true? Your statement defies logic.
I was gifted an Echo, when they first came out. My Echo used to say "Sorry, I did not understand you.", at random times, without prompting it. That was when I unplugged it and threw it in the closet!
so because of an issue where Alexa thought she heard the activate code "ALexa" you just got rid of it???
that would be like killing a person with CAPD (Central Auditory Processing disorder) where they think they heard something, but what they heard was not what was said.
alexa like any computer, or person still needs to learn, understand what is being said, like a poster above said, there are many dialects, just within the USA, let alone the worlI love technology, I love it even more when it works like it is supposed to..
Who do you think you are? Some amateur CD lawyer? You can't badger me into the corner that you want me in with your demand for a Yes/No answer.
Of course not, answering would either expose you as delusional or sink your argument, which is why you instead launched into a long-winded avoidance post.
My position is that the people in this thread who seem to believe a couple old tech guys saying they wouldn't have smart devices in their home is somehow proof of anything aren't making a lot of sense, they are in the minority including among those who actually work in that sector of the industry today.
Blue painter's tape over the laptop's camera. Dressed in pixelated camo clothing in case that blue light over the fridge's ice dispenser is actually a camera. Ukrainian speed metal at full volume in case that bastard printer is making a side-channel attack by listening to the beat of my keystrokes on the laptop. Tinfoil over everything. Every. Thing.
Now go see how China is tracking down the people that rioted......
That is current events.
The point of many opposed to leveraging the technology is not a fear of the technology itself, rather, it's a fear of the misuse of one of the key artifacts of that technology.
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