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from the Alexa,-order-two-tons-of-creamed-corn.-Alexa-confirm-order dept.
Gizmodo has an article up that The Amazon Alexa Eavesdropping Nightmare Came True
A German Amazon user requested data about his personal activities under the EU's General Data Protection (GDP) regulation.
This individual owned no Alexa devices, but still received over 1700 recordings of what were purportedly his commands.
Some of the files reportedly related to his Amazon searches. But according to the report there were also hundreds of Wav files and a PDF cataloging transcripts of Alexa’s interpretations of voice commands. According to c’t magazine
The recordings revealed the victims’ personal habits, jobs, taste in music, schedule, alarms, social life, and even caught him showering.
The recordings were not of the recipient's voice nor anyone he recognized. When he contacted Amazon, he received no response (other than the link to the file going dead). He then contacted C't Magazine.
Using the information they gathered from the recordings, the magazine contacted the victim of the data leak. He “was audibly shocked,” and confirmed it was him in the recordings and that the outlet had figured out the identity of his girlfriend. He said Amazon did not contact him.
When asked for comment by Gizmodo
Amazon sent Gizmodo the same statement it had shared with Reuters. “This was an unfortunate case of human error and an isolated incident. We have resolved the issue with the two customers involved and have taken steps to further improve our processes. We were also in touch on a precautionary basis with the relevant regulatory authorities.”
While not a common type of mistake, inappropriate sharing of conversations and recording is also hardly unheard of. For example a Portland woman found her Echo had sent a recorded conversation between her and her husband to one of his employees.
As a reminder, you can delete your Amazon Echo recorded history or just parts of it should you wish to do so, as described here.
(Score: 2) by BsAtHome on Sunday December 23 2018, @09:39PM (1 child)
Alexa response: Your request is ambiguous. If you hide a body, then it can be found again. Disposing of a body means you cannot find it again. Please rephrase your question to select one of the choices.
(Score: 2, Funny) by Ethanol-fueled on Sunday December 23 2018, @09:50PM
I think Alexa's generic "I don't want to answer your question" response is "Hmmm. I don't know." Usually when asked questions about racial superiority or racial stereotypes, like "Why do Blacks loiter so much?"
It claims that it does not give its data to the CIA or NSA, but it is also a goddamn stinking liar created by a fucking slave-driver. If I was a rich man I'd buy one and tell it, "Alexa, I am about to beat you with a baseball bat, what do you think about that?" Then follow-through the with the threat.