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Thousands of Amazon Employees Listen to Alexa Requests for Improvement Purposes [Updated]

LovingTeddy said:
I guess you missed the part of the article says Apple has its employee listen to the Siri queries as well?
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They don't care because "Apple is good". They ignore the fact that Apple keeps their data for testing as well, sells anonymous ads just like Google, and that Apple responds with info to warrants the same as any other company.

It's no different than people drinking the Kool-Aid that Apple doesn't sell them as a product, whike Apple makes billions a year selling access to its users, such as selling primary search to Google.

APPLE FINALLY REVEALS HOW LONG SIRI KEEPS YOUR DATA - Wired

https://www.wired.com/2013/04/siri-two-years/
 
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MacRumors said:
Alexa users concerned with the data that's being collected and used by Amazon should make sure to enable all privacy features and uncheck the option for letting Amazon save Echo recordings. Additional details on how Amazon uses the voice recordings it collects can be found in the original Bloomberg article.
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Where and how can I enable the privacy features? I have a Sonos Beam and the Alexa app
 
Not surprised at all really. I love gadgets, but I will never install any of these devices in my home. In fact, if a device has Alexa built in, such as an AV receiver I was shopping for recently, it will come off my list. One thing is for sure, I definitely will never buy a car with Alexa.

I think for now we're safe with Apple, as they still prefer your cash rather than monetizing your data. When sales further deteriorate, I'll bet they'll start using all the data they've already collected.
 
No idea why anyone would ever want a speaker in their home that can be used to listen to everything you say or do..... And if you think Apple doesn't have some secret room where people are listening in on siri and homepod requests then I have a bridge I'd like to sell you, PM me for prices.
 
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Abazigal said:
Apple does go one step further than any other company in stripping personally identifiable information from the data it analyzes.
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Amazon - "We have strict technical and operational safeguards, and have a zero tolerance policy for the abuse of our system. Employees do not have direct access to information that can identify the person or account as part of this workflow."
 
Textime said:
If you know that you will get an electric shock when you play at the socket, then it is not the socket's fault. Get your mind right.
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Being shocked and unknowingly having everything you say to convenience device recorded and listened to by thousands of strangers are not in any way related. This is blatant lack of respect for customer privacy. The policy should be as quoted below.
Aloft085 said:
Should be opt-in only, and we should have exact control over what they can do with it.
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Yep, exactly.
 
BasicGreatGuy said:
I don't have any Amazon or Google voice or music products. I do not use any Google products (including search). I do use Amazon prime (for deliveries) and I do control what information I share with Amazon (re: address and payment details). All my Macs, iPhones, and iPad are locked down. Nothing goes out that I don't know about.

If you want to use Google and Amazon in the manner that the article addresses, have at it. I want no part of it.

If you want to try and paint me in some corner with the "its all the same because everyone has information on you already" rhetoric, you can try that on someone else.
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As much as you have (all the various Apple devices you have listed), I am surprised you have NONE of the software that is part of those devices; but you DO have your tinfoil hat.
 
Haynzee said:
Amazon - "We have strict technical and operational safeguards, and have a zero tolerance policy for the abuse of our system. Employees do not have direct access to information that can identify the person or account as part of this workflow."
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And in paragraph 19,

"Apple’s Siri also has human helpers, who work to gauge whether the digital assistant’s interpretation of requests lines up with what the person said. The recordings they review lack personally identifiable information and are stored for six months tied to a random identifier, according to an Apple security white paper. After that, the data is stripped of its random identification information but may be stored for longer periods to improve Siri’s voice recognition."

So it is definitely still easier for an employee at Amazon to figure out who said what, as compared to the same person working at Apple. Not saying that it is easy to begin with, just comparatively.

To be clear, I do feel that Bloomberg is simply trying to blow up what is otherwise a non-issue for the sake of clicks. Of course there are human listeners refining and fine-tuning these algorithms. How else would speech-to-text even work in the first place? I can understand the average consumer being spooked by this realisation, but it should come as no surprise to tech publications. And even so, shouldn't they be working to help better educate the reader, rather than cause undue alarm and panic for the sake of driving clicks?

However, it's clear that not all services are equal, and it shouldn't be surprising that different companies go to different extents to safeguard our privacy, in line with the values and principles they espouse. As such, I don't think it's fair to tar every company with the same brush.

I maintain that Apple's approach continues to be the better one in this regard.
 
Maybe I'm alone in thinking this, but I really could not care less if Amazon is listening in. It's not like I'm doing anything shady or illegal that I need to keep private. The most odd thing they'd probably hear is me getting pissed off at a video game haha. Sure, they could possibly hear something personal.. but it's not like my picture is going to pop up on their screens with all my personal info. I'm just another anonymous user amongst millions.
 
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Why ANYONE would put one of these spy devices in their home -- Amazon/Apple/Wink/Samsung/Whatever -- is beyond my ability to comprehend.

We have really given up SO much of our privacy in the past few years, and most of it willingly...
 
bbednarz said:
Amazon does not appear to be removing all personally identifiable information, and while the Echo is meant to collect audio only when a wake word is spoken, the employees who spoke to Bloomberg said they often hear audio files that appear to have started recording with no wake word at all."
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Yes, not all, if you think you can be identified by your first name maybe you should avoid Amazon.

Recordings with no wake word is another way of saying the wake word was incorrectly identified - a false positive. Correcting this error is the point of having humans check the results.
 
So why doesn’t the article tell you how to turn off all of this in the privacy settings of Amazon????



MacRumors said:



Amazon has thousands of employees around the world that listen to voice recordings captured in the homes of Amazon Echo owners, reports Bloomberg.

Recordings are listened to, transcribed, annotated, and added back into the software as part of Amazon's effort to help Alexa better respond to voice commands. Amazon has facilities for Alexa improvement in places that range from Boston to Costa Rica, India, and Romania.

amazonecho-1-800x517.jpg

Seven people familiar with Amazon's review process spoke to Bloomberg and revealed some insider details on the program that may be concerning to Echo users.

While much of the work has been described as "mundane," employees have sometimes come across more private recordings, such as a woman singing off key in the shower or a child screaming for help. Amazon employees have internal chat rooms where they share files when help is needed parsing a word or, more concerning, when an "amusing recording" is found.

Two workers told Bloomberg that they've heard recordings that are upsetting or potentially criminal, and while Amazon claims to have procedures in place for such occurrences, some employees have been told it's not the company's job to interfere.Alexa users have the option to disable the use of their voice recordings for improvements to the service, but some may not know that these options exist. Amazon also does not make it clear that actual people are listening to the recordings.

According to Bloomberg, recordings sent to employees who work on Alexa don't include a user's full name or address, but an account number, first name, and the device's serial number are associated with the recording.

In a statement to Bloomberg, Amazon said that an "extremely small" number of Alexa voice recordings are annotated and that there are measures in place to protect user identity.It is standard practice to use some recordings for product improvement. Apple has employees who listen to Siri queries to make sure the interpretation of a request lines up with what the person said. Recordings are stripped of identifiable information, however, and stored for six months with a random identifier.

Google too has employees who are able to access audio snippets from Google Assistant for the purpose of improving the product, but Google, like Apple, removes personally identifiable information and also distorts audio.

Amazon does not appear to be removing all personally identifiable information, and while the Echo is meant to collect audio only when a wake word is spoken, the employees who spoke to Bloomberg said they often hear audio files that appear to have started recording with no wake word at all.

Alexa users concerned with the data that's being collected and used by Amazon should make sure to enable all privacy features and uncheck the option for letting Amazon save Echo recordings. Additional details on how Amazon uses the voice recordings it collects can be found in the original Bloomberg article.

Article Link: Thousands of Amazon Employees Listen to Alexa Requests for Improvement Purposes
Click to expand...
 
Relax folks. It’s a setting you can easily turn off if it bothers you.

You all are fooling yourselves if you don’t think Apple does similar things.
 
Lol if a company like Amazon is listening to each and every recording you sent to them, except that the clip isn't tagged with your name, how actually anonymous is it?

Think about it. If Amazon releases a video echo dot which records video of your home and your video clips are being reviewed "anonymously" by Amazon employees or contractors, do you think it's acceptable? How anonymous is it?
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Lol I meant literally anonymous. And I didn’t mention Amazon or Video of my Home. Lol.
 
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