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“Alexa, Are You Listening?”- The Latest on Alexa Home Automation

Alexa has become a household name since early 2017 when Amazon released they affordable home automation system. Alexa made everyone’s life easier by having learning capabilities and other tricks that made life a little more comfortable and more entertaining. But, in the latest reports, Alexa might be learning a little too much about us when she is in our homes. Park Place Installations has the latest news on some of the more controversial articles relating to Alexa and other home automation systems.

The Patent

According to The Independent, Amazon filed for a new patent in April 2018. This would allow for Amazon and all echo products to “voice sniff” conversations happening around the device. This information would be collected and analyzed, to be used for advertisements. Now, Alexa and other Amazon echo products are hardwired to only record conversations when the wake word “Alexa” has been said. The voice capabilities for Alexa are used for playing music, controlling other smart home devices, and ordering products off of Amazon when instructed. AS of right now, Amazon saves those voice files on a server, but the user can listen to and delete those recordings if they so choose.

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The Fear

Most people against this patent are afraid that this new patent is an invasion of privacy. The patent suggests that Alexa would be able to recognize the words “love” and “hate” to recommend products from Amazon presumably on users need. But, is having every conversation in a household recorded seems to be going too far?

Amazon argues that this technology is light years away. Amazon made clear that it does and is not able to collect such data at the moment. The company also said that they might not even use the technology described in the patent.“We take privacy seriously and have built multiple layers of privacy into our Echo devices,” said an Amazon spokesperson.

As a leader in home automation, Park Place Installations wants to keep you informed and updated on all the latest news when it comes to smart homes! When looking at home automation devices, Alexa and the Amazon echo are the popular choices.

Park Place Installations has all the information you need on home automation systems in Western New York. We work with the best brands to get you the products you need to create a smart home! We service all of Western New York with home automation devices and technology that will bring you into the 21st Century. Call us today so we can start working together toward your future smart home!

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