Google and Amazon are reportedly some of the biggest data collectors through their smart home applications, which has raised concerns about its implications for privacy and future attacks.
According to the Surfshark investigation, corporations such as Google and Amazon are ranked highest on the charts that illustrate their data use, which is concerning information. The company, well-known for its VPN services, has also made the test details public.
(Photo : Chris Yang from Unsplash)
The platform examined about 290 apps that were linked to more than 400 smart home appliances from various manufacturers, including vacuum cleaners and security cameras.
After completing the procedure, the study discovered that, out of the 32 data points that could be collected, Amazon's Alex was the biggest defaulter when it came to obtaining data from these devices. Alexa gathers information about a person's location, personal information about them, and even health-related details.
Google and its assistant are second on the list. Out of the possible 32 data points, it has been found to collect 22 points. The primary issue with Google's linking is that it makes all your data traceable to certain people, making them open to further attacks.
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Google's AI Phone Scam Call Privacy Concerns
Google and Amazon have already been under fire for privacy issues. Most recently, Google unveiled a financial scam phone call detector that uses artificial intelligence and monitors calls in real-time. Privacy advocates raised concerns about privacy ramifications at the time.
According to Google Vice President of Engineering Dave Burke, the company is exploring a system that uses artificial intelligence to recognize patterns connected to scams and alert Android phone users when frauds are suspected.
Examples allegedly on show at the event included buttons to end and restart the call and a red pop-up window with the text, Likely scam: Banks will never ask you to shift your money to keep it secure. The phone user received a notification about fraud via an alarm sound.
The fact that it indicates that Google's AI answers your calls could terrify some people. In previous reports, a corporate representative guaranteed the privacy of all the data on your smartphone.
Amazon Ring Privacy Concerns
Amazon's Ring smart doorbell was also flagged last year with "egregious violations of users' privacy," which reportedly included collecting user-provided video data for analysis and AI training without obtaining authorization, hiding video usage permits in unclear contracts, and having inadequate security measures that allowed Ring staff to surveil and harass individuals in public.
The ring was also a cause of concern for its contentious alliances with hundreds of American police departments. According to reports, privacy advocates are concerned that the program and its implementation have made residents informants and raised the prospect of racial profiling, with little control over how police officers may use the data.
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