In recent years, voice assistants have become increasingly popular. Today, many people use them in almost every aspect of their lives. The reason why they are so popular is that they can simplify your life and quickly carry out a task. For example, with a simple voice command, they can tell you what plans are on your calendar, inform you about the weather, play music, and much more.
That said, while these voice assistants are certainly useful, many people have wondered about the safety risks that surround them. This is a valid concern considering that voice assistants are so deeply embedded into many people’s daily lives. While voice assistants are considered safe, there are still safety and privacy concerns that do exist, but more on this later on.
Essentially some individuals are scared that their voice assistants are spying on them. With that in mind, it is possible that there is already a spy app on people’s devices, like one of the spy apps listed by Techopedia. Spy apps are often installed on people’s devices and used for a number of things. Some parents use them to keep an eye on children, or family members use them to keep tabs on others. Similarly, some employers use them on work devices to monitor employees. Tech expert Krishi Chowdhary explains that spy apps are popular and could already be installed on some people’s phones as they help those with access monitor device communications and more. So, while some are worried about voice assistants spying on them, there are other apps that could possibly be spying on them already.
This article will dive into how voice assistants work, security/privacy concerns, and how they gather data.
What Are Voice Assistants and How Do They Work?
As the name suggests, voice assistants are software that users can interact with through voice commands. They can help users complete several tasks such as making calls, setting up alarms, booking calendar meetings, answering questions, and much more.
Here are a few popular examples of voice assistants: Alexa (Amazon), Bixby (Samsung), Siri (Apple), Cortona (Microsoft), and Google Assistant. Today, this technology is embedded in most IoT devices including smart speakers, mobile phones, tablets, computers, and even smartwatches.
The way voice assistants operate is that the user first needs to activate them by saying a specific keyword that is tied to that assistant. For instance, “Ok Google” or “Hey Siri”. After saying the keyword, the user can state the command they want the voice assistant to carry out.
The technology allows the assistant to work and then translate the command from speech to text. This is done through Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR). In text form, the software can then use Natural Language Processing (NLP) to understand the intent of the command.
After this, the assistant can then carry out the objective and use text-to-speech (TTS) technology to respond back to the user. All of this takes place within a matter of seconds.
Privacy Concerns
Due to these voice assistants always being in somewhat of an active state, privacy concerns are raised. The reason for this is that for the voice assistant to function, they need to always listen for their wake-up keyword. Otherwise, they won’t know when the user calls for them.
Essentially, this means that the voice assistant is always listening to what is going on around it. However, it is important to emphasise that while they are always listening, they are not always recording. This is an essential factor to keep in mind.
If they were not continuously in this active state, they would be unable to function except for the user pressing a specific button tied to the assistant. In this case, when the button is pressed, the voice assistant becomes active and starts recording.
In 2015, several news organisations reported that it was revealed that within Samsung’s policies, they urge users who own one of their Smart TVs to not talk about personal information in front of the device.
This is one of the main privacy concerns when it comes to voice assistants. If they were to accidentally become active, they could record discussions where sensitive information was revealed. If this were to happen, the data captured could be sent to the company that made the device and even to other third parties.
Therefore, it is always recommended that users apply caution and not discuss private/sensitive information in front of voice assistants as they could accidentally record it. Another important factor that is worth mentioning is that for these assistants to function properly, they require access to some of the user’s personal data such as email accounts or contact lists.
Also, in some cases, they might gather additional data from the device it is connected to such as user habits or usage times. All of this further decreases the user’s privacy.
Security Concerns
In addition to privacy concerns, there are also security challenges that surround voice assistants. For example, hackers could potentially infiltrate the voice assistant’s security and get access to sensitive data.
If you put everything into perspective, voice assistants gather all sorts of data about the user and how the device is used. Companies use this information for various purposes such as improving the voice assistant, creating more personalised advertisements, or for the development of new features/products.
If this data does fall into the wrong hands, it could open the door to several issues like identity theft or fraud. Furthermore, IoT devices — smart TVs, speakers, etc. usually do not have the best security. This further increases the chances of unauthorised users gaining access to the personal data that the voice assistant collects.
Apart from this, there is also the possibility of the company experiencing a data breach. Thus some individuals have concerns about how organisations are storing the information that these assistants gather.
This factor is further amplified due to the fact that parts of the data might be shared with third-party developers to enhance services. However, this creates another entry point for threat actors if the proper safety protocols are not followed.
Continuous Technological Advances Can Create New Concerns For Voice Assistants
Technology is constantly evolving and further expanding the capabilities of the electronic devices we already use. Integrating voice assistants with new technologies also creates security risks that companies need to take into consideration.
For example, with how popular digital currencies have become, users can utilise voice assistants to check cryptocurrency prices, make transactions, and even engage in activities like gambling. While this does offer a better user experience thanks to the ability to now manage crypto assets in a quick and easy hands-free way, it does create new security challenges.
Thus further increasing the need for developers to take these factors into account so that they can implement robust security measures to combat these risks. One potential way they could do this is to look at the possibility of utilising blockchain technology for security. This concept is already being explored to strengthen the security that IoT devices offer.
To recap, while voice assistants are certainly useful due to the convenience they offer, they do have security and privacy issues that surround them. This could range from accidentally recording sensitive information, the company suffering a data breach, security vulnerabilities, or even the integration of new technologies.
That said, it is safe to say that voice assistants will certainly continue to improve in the future. This is due to the advancements taking place in AI and machine learning. However, currently, there are still a few security and privacy concerns that developers should focus on improving.