The privacy and security of virtual assistants and smart home devices is a major concern for many people.
In this article, we will cover privacy of virtual assistants and smart home. You will understand the reality whether your privacy is compromised while using these virtual assistants.
Security and Privacy of Smart homes
We all have heard lot of theories surrounding smart home and smart devices. Especially many people believe that these voice-activated assistants are used by companies such as Amazon and Google to create targeted marketing campaigns thus compromising your privacy. Another theory surrounding these smart devices is that they can be used by Government agencies for the purpose of surveillance and other purposes.
We will try to explore this little more so that we can reach to the reality of these theories. Are we really at risk of compromising our personal privacy and security by installing these smart devices.
First of all do you really think FBI or CIA have no better means or devices to monitor someone if they want to. Believe us there are much better ways they use for the purpose of surveillance. On top there is no evidence so far any of the security agencies are using them for any purpose. In our opinion it is extremely safe and there is no need to worry that your security will compromise just by installing these smart devices.
Smart Voice Assistants and Marketing
It is true that these voice activated assistants listen to what you are saying in house and record the most common words. These words are then used to create targeted marketing campaigns. So, yes in certain ways your privacy is compromised. But in our view this is how modern marketing campaigns are working.
We all know companies like Google and Facebook monitor our browsing and buying habits and then these are used by for creating targeted marketing campaigns. To be honest, in today’s world your buying habits and browsing interests are not private even if you think they are. So, We will say yes your buying preferences and other interests are somewhat compromised by installing these voice activated assistants. However, believe us, they are no more private even if you don’t have these devices.
These are some extra measure you can take to keep your privacy secure
- Understanding Privacy Policy All of these voice activated assistants come up with privacy policies that is worth reading and understanding. Privacy Policy will have answers to most of your questions. You can further go to next step by calling sales team to gather more information.
- Regular update of Devices Companies like Google and Amazon continue to improve the security of these devices. Especially if they find any kind of security breach they immediately move to fix them as they cannot afford bad name of their brand. I understand this is little annoying every time smart devices asks for update but I recommend it is worth updating to protect your privacy and security.
- Never Share your Personal Information Remember the Golden rule whenever any smart device asks for your personal information such a social security number do not share. They absolutely don’t need them to perform any function.
- Turning off Microphone when you don’t want them to listen You can easily turn off the microphone of voice activated assistants when you do not want them to listen to you. But you have to remember to turn them on when you need them to function.
The devices are often connected to the internet, which means that there is a possibility of being hacked. There are many ways in which hackers can get access to your data. They can hack into your device and steal your personal information. The best way to protect yourself from these hackers is by using strong passwords and changing them regularly.
In our opinion there is no serious threat with respect to security and privacy when it comes to smart devices. The prime objective of these smart devices is to make your life more and more comfortable. For those people who are extra conscious of their privacy and security there are additional steps that you can take as mentioned above to ensure your security.
