Running Naked through the Internet category archive

And this surprises you how?

In The Roanoke Times, Betsy Biesenbach muses on what gives the Zuckerborg such a hold on person. A snippet:

But Facebook offers us something more — it allows us to the be the center of our own universe. We can “like” other people’s posts, we can commiserate with them, we can satisfy our inner voyeur by lurking, or we can hide behind our anonymity and attack complete strangers — and never have to get off the couch. It’s only a simulation of human interaction, but it can feel like the real thing, and we’re in control of it all.

Two weeks ago, according to Danielle, an employee of her husband’s who lived in Seattle called and told the family that they were “being hacked.”

The man told the family he had audio recordings from inside their house. He sent back the files and indeed, they were the family’s conversations, Danielle said.

(snip)

In a statement to KIRO, Amazon said, “Echo woke up due to a word in background conversation sounding like ‘Alexa.’ Then, 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. Alexa then asked out loud, ‘[contact name], right?’ Alexa then interpreted background conversation as ‘right.’ As unlikely as this string of events is, we are evaluating options to make this case even less likely.”

And this surprises you how?

Yet another Facebook user is surprised at how thoroughly he has been assimilated by the Zuckerborg. A snippet:

With a few clicks, I learned that about 500 advertisers — many that I had never heard of — had my contact information, which could include my email address, phone number and full name. Facebook also had my entire phone book, including the number to ring my apartment buzzer. The social network had even kept a permanent record of the roughly 100 people I had deleted from my friends list over the last 14 years, including my exes.

One more time: The internet is a public place. Comport yourself accordingly.

Sunday’s New York Times explored coming attractions in digital spyware.

No, not that kind of spyware; the spyware that masquerades as a help-meet, so that persons eagerly welcome it into their homes. Here’s some of the patents that are pending:

In one set of patent applications, Amazon describes how a “voice sniffer algorithm” could be used on an array of devices, like tablets and e-book readers, to analyze audio almost in real time when it hears words like “love,” bought” or “dislike.” A diagram included with the application illustrated how a phone call between two friends could result in one receiving an offer for the San Diego Zoo and the other seeing an ad for a Wine of the Month Club membership.

Some patent applications from Google, which also owns the smart home product maker Nest Labs, describe how audio and visual signals could be used in the context of elaborate smart home setups.

One application details how audio monitoring could help detect that a child is engaging in “mischief” at home by first using speech patterns and pitch to identify a child’s presence, one filing said. A device could then try to sense movement while listening for whispers or silence, and even program a smart speaker to “provide a verbal warning.”

I will note that Google, Amazon, and other vendors of this stuff claim that no so features are currently in use and that their current consumer digital “assistants” speak only when spoken to. Given the tech industry’s spotless record of integrity, I have no doubt that such claims are credib–oh, never mind.

Follow the link, then remind yourself that it’s perfectly okay to get off the couch and turn off the coffee pot on your ownsome.

If you are thinking of getting internet enabled doo-dads for Christmas for yourself or others, check Mozilla’s report, “Privacy Not Included.”

Via Bruce Schneier.

Thom speaks on several off-beat topics, then discusses how your smartphone spies on you. The relevant portion starts at the five-minute mark.