Hey Siri, I need some privacy.
Apple’s “Siri” automated assistant routinely records people having sex, as well as making drug deals and discussing confidential medical information, according to a recent report.
Siri, which is built in to the iPhone, Apple Watch and HomePod smart speaker, is activated when someone says “Hey, Siri” – but the artificial intelligence often begins operating by mistake, a quality-control contractor told The Guardian.
“The sound of a zip, Siri often hears as a trigger,” the whistleblower said.
Apple hires outside workers around the world to review Siri recordings and grade how the software responded to requests, according to the Guardian.
“There have been countless instances of recordings featuring private discussions between doctors and patients, business deals, seemingly criminal dealings, sexual encounters and so on,” the contractor revealed.
“These recordings are accompanied by user data showing location, contact details, and app data.”
The contractor said inadvertent recordings were most often made by the Apple Watch, which starts at $399 for the latest model, and the $299 Home Pod.
“The regularity of accidental triggers on the watch is incredibly high,” the contractor said.
“The watch can record some snippets that will be 30 seconds – not that long but you can gather a good idea of what’s going on.”
On some recordings, the contractor said, “you can definitely hear a doctor and patient, talking about the medical history of the patient. Or you’d hear someone, maybe with car engine background noise – you can’t say definitely, but it’s a drug deal … you can definitely hear it happening.”
“And you’d hear, like, people engaging in sexual acts that are accidentally recorded on the pod or the watch,” the contractor added.
The revelations are bound to spark concern among Apple users who have wondered if Siri is always listening to their conversations and activities.
Apple downplayed the likelihood of any individual recording being listened to, telling the Guardian that less than 1 percent of daily Siri recordings get randomly reviewed by its contractors “to improve Siri and dictation.”
The tech giant also said that the recordings are usually only a few seconds long, and insisted it takes its customers’ privacy seriously.
“User requests are not associated with the user’s Apple ID,” the company said.
“Siri responses are analysed in secure facilities and all reviewers are under the obligation to adhere to Apple’s strict confidentiality requirements.”
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