Why I think Google Home spying on you doesn't really matter.

[Xanthe_2871]

Before I begin... this is my opinion. I welcome your comments, but please be constructive. I'm writing this off the cuff, using my own feelings and logic. It's not scientific. 

TL;DR is at the bottom.

 

I have 16 Google Home products set up in my home, including the original Google Home, a bunch of minis, and a few hubs (the one with the screen). I have 5 more coming from eBay in the next few weeks. I find them to be very useful, from controlling lights to playing media, to controlling the TV and making house wide broadcasts. When I had some friends over the other day we had a discussion about them which basically boiled down to Google, the NSA, and anyone else with some hacking skills spying on me 24/7. I think this is not a big deal, and here's why:

 

• Technology is spying on us everywhere. Google Home isn't really that much of an addition.
• Hackers will always have a way into our lives. We shouldn't live in fear of them.
• Whoever is watching us, Google, NSA, etc. will keep on doing so regardless of our actions. All we can do is make it easier or harder. We can't stop them.

 

To my first point, we are surrounded by cameras and microphones. Most of us willingly carry these around on us everyday with our smartphones. Even if you don't, your friends probably do. And for those of you who do live under rocks (how are you even reading this?) stores will soon, if they are not already, be using AI with their security cameras to recognize your face and ID you. No matter what you do, some company somewhere is probably spying on you. Sure, Google Home is inviting them into your house, but again, your phone is in your house. Your computer is. Lots of devices with internet and microphones, arguably devices that can spy on you better since you are aware of the Google Home's spying, you can mute or unplug it if a conversation needs to be private, but any spyware on your phone or computer? You probably don't turn those things off when you have a private conversation. 

 

On the second point, I feel this is pretty self explanatory but the hackers can do whatever they want. VPNs, Tor, and other anonymizing tactics can not protect you from all angles. If you are well informed than you can do a lot to make it harder, but ultimately nothing is 100% fool proof. And again, going off my own anecdotal evidence I believe it's easier to hack a computer for spying on someone than a Google Home. It's common sense really. Computers have been around for a long time, with hackers having tons of experience hacking them. Smart speakers are a relativity new category, made in the era of hacking and whatnot, and in the case of Google, by a company that cares about it's reputation and has a past of making secure devices (see how many hackers hit the chromebooks over PCs)

 

Then my final point. Just look at all the news in the last few years. Facebook cyber stalks pretty much everyone, even non-users. Credit card companies sell data on their users. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if local utility companies sold data in some jurisdictions. Yes, Google Home makes it easier, but really if Google wants to know what you're eating, or who you're talking to IRL, or when, they WILL find out. It's just too easy for them at this point, and too hard for you to stop them. 

 

This is basically the crux of my view, the TL;DR: We will always be spied upon. Privacy may not be dead, but it's damn close. You can either embrace the future, and benefit from the conveniences, or you can try to protect yourself from the inevitable day when Google, Facebook, the NSA, FBI, MI6, and your nosy neighbor will finally find out what you do all day at home. I say, they will find a way, might as well enjoy what the technology can do for you. 

 

Again, I welcome your comments. Just don't be rude. We can agree to disagree.  

[Teddy07]

Data protection is highly overrated and just slows down progress. I also don´t care if Google or any other company spies on me. I will happily use their service if it is convenient.

[Tarun10]

I totally agree with this. I live in India so smart home products haven't reached us a lot just Alexa and Google Home stuff which are a little overpriced but that can't be solved.

 

We know hackers exist and they are gonna steal information to get money or just for fun for all I know and anybody with some common sense on the internet can avoid them to a major extent by setting decent passwords and not going to sketchy websites.

 

Of course not much you can do about Google or Facebook selling your information unless you would rather live without them. I don't need Facebook except to save game data form some of my favorite mobile games. Google and other services have become unavoidable and we have become aware of them thinking twice before we hand over some info to them, well atleast some of us. But flying under the radar are the other apps and things we use that require that tale our info.

 

I don't think Google Home or other products are going to be easier to hack than traditional computers like OP mentioned. The only question is how much voice data and other data is stored by Google and other companies like Apple on their cloud but I think its gonna cost them a fortune to store all that data, but they make a fortune off of it so not really much of a problem. Hopefully tighter regulations might help but unless the people doing the investigations are fair, unbiased and not bribed, the regulations are gonna have the opposite effect of what we desired. The fines are fine but if they make more money form this data than they pay in fines, it is still a win for them. There is just as much risk and privacy loss when we post stupid stuff on FB and IG and give up sensitive information in the process.

 

Hackers ain't going anywhere and simple data collection to resolve software bugs had turned into a big market with god knows how much annual revenue. Ever since we made that first phone call and that telegram we lost our privacy. Its important to all people just not as much to some. Eventually, somebody or the other will know what you are doing all day every day every year for ever, maybe even when you are dead. I think we can't stop it anytime soon but we can be smarter to prevent it to some extent. And living in the woods isn't the solution. 

 

I would like to see a group of hackers who hack into these large companies and find out what sort of data is stored and how it is used and also the accounting behind these companies. I personally don't care if somebody knows my Birthday, height, weight, voting preferences, and so on but you can't really be fine with people stealing credit card information and other crucial numbers. 

 

The best and only thing we can do short of a worldwide boycott (I can't live without YouTube for that long) is to make it tougher for anyone to steal our data. The best way is to think twice before giving it and having just a pinch of common sense.

[Tarun10]

19 minutes ago, Teddy07 said:

Data protection is highly overrated and just slows down progress. I also don´t care if Google or any other company spies on me. I will happily use their service if it is convenient.

I know I don't care if they know I hate trump or my favorite brand or where I live because its something most people can find out if they knew you. What's to say your friends don't give this information away?? But sometimes its just annoying, especially if you lose more critical info such as banking numbers, credit cards, etc. Otherwise I don't give a damn as long as the service is useful unlike some social media platforms I know of (cough cough FB cough).

[Billy Pilgrim]

41 minutes ago, Xanthe_2871 said:

Again, I welcome your comments. Just don't be rude. We can agree to disagree.  

Yeah, I guess another way to look at this is that we are past the point of no return.

 

Whenever I read a dystopian book like 1984 or Brave New World I sometimes think of the government as starting out as a tech company and coming into power.

[Giganthrax]

I never understood all this paranoia about "they're spying on us!!!11111" 

 

99.9999999999999% of people don't do anything that's worth spying on for. What could an FBI agent, or Google representative, or w/e possibly find out if they spied on me? Total average person stuff. Literally nothing worthwhile to a giant company or organization. At best they can get browsing/shopping data so they can market stuff to me better (which they already do, which I see no problem with). 

 

Only people who should care about being spied on in this way are criminals, pedophiles, and other dangerous freaks, but if spying is going to help catch those people, I'm all for it. With important politicians and such it could be an issue, but people like that willhave expert teams protecting them against this sort of spying.

 

Also, can you imagine the amount of manpower it would take to actually read people's chat logs and listen to their phone calls? It would be enormous. You'd need at least one agent per every 4-5 people. It simply wouldn't be worthwhile to a company or an organization under any stretch. 

 

TLDR: People secretly hope they're not average and that some nebulous organization would actually want to spy on them. 

[LinusOnLine]

It is not the companies spying that worries me. It is how it can be used by a government that is scary. Read George Orwell 1984 if you do not understand what I am talking about.

[Billy Pilgrim]

1 minute ago, LinusOnLine said:

It is not the companies spying that worries me. It is how it can be used by a government that is scary. Read George Orwell 1984 if you do not understand what I am talking about.

Have you ever considered a company trying to become a government? At this point it would be relatively easy now that they know where we all are and know how to manipulate us with their propaganda delivery systems we call phones.

[Princess Luna]

Windows Telemetry never bothered me personally and I also think people overreacts to it.

[LinusOnLine]

Just now, Billy Pilgrim said:

Have you ever considered a company trying to become a government? At this point it would be relatively easy now that they know where we all are and know how to manipulate us with their propaganda delivery systems we call phones.

Some companies are basically controlling governments already so I have thought about it  The latest elections in several countries are proof of it.

[GilmourD]

We live in an age where people post pictures of their poop on websites to get it rated and then go on Facebook and complain about privacy.

 

Privacy works like it always has. Privacy isn't any different than it was back in the times of cavemen. If you don't want people to know things don't say it near them and don't tell people that you don't implicitly trust. It's not that tech companies are taking your information. It's that you're putting it out there.

[e1aek]

Give me convenience or give me death.

[airdeano]

we don't have to think if they are, we know they are from the court cases involving the device capturing the audio of a couple of murders arkansas and new hampshire.

 

im gunna copyright myself (likeness and speech) so that any/all captured likenesses and vocal transmissions directly/indirectly are property of me and cannot be used without any consent from me. any usage of those articles are property of me and under the penalty of law any usage without consent is breaking the law.

 

the unspoken EULA (plugging this device in signifies you are agreeing to some terms) in significantly small type and requires a three-hour session with a legal staff.

[KuJoe]

For me, commercial smart devices in the home is where I draw the line. Open source and self hosted with full control over the data is the only route I would go. I will consider using Amazon or Google's API, but only because I have control over what is sent to them.

[Ryzza5]

Hopefully most of us are boring enough to not be worth spying on

[KuJoe]

This thread reminded me of this song. Basically you become a bigger "target" by not having your data in the massive pool of other people's data. 

 

[Tamesh16]

i was thinking about this the other day as well, think about how great google maps has become because google started taking data from its users, not saying all data that they collect is great , but it can certainly help , 

all that data from traffic can help designate routes , learn about speed limits and accurately tell the fastest routes based on traffic 

the one thing that is annoying though is data for ad relevance. and i agree it will only get worse 

[Guest]

Cant spy on me some days no cell reception. 

[Razor Blade]

I don't think it is spying so much as just data mining...and you better believe that every single tiny insignificant act you do and product you buy is VERY interesting to marketing algorithms. Who you are, where you are, what you like, what you don't like, what you eat, what you watch, gender, age, weight, height, health, what you do, where you work, etc. is all part of building a very detailed profile so the free market can sell you more stuff. I can see why people would be paranoid about it. That said, I don't have an issue with it. As long as it is disclosed and the privacy policy is decent.

 

What I do take issue with is for one when opt out of sharing with 3rd party is either not an option or completely disregarded. Or two when the smart home device has terrible network security...Probably not an issue for Google or Amazon devices...hopefully not. However all those other devices you control with Google assistant and Alexa...eh not always so sure.

[BuckGup]

On 12/29/2018 at 2:57 AM, Teddy07 said:

Data protection is highly overrated and just slows down progress. I also don´t care if Google or any other company spies on me. I will happily use their service if it is convenient.

What a moronic thing to say. If you don't care give me your passwords to every account you have and also your bank accounts all your relatives names and while you are at it SSN. 

[FezBoy]

19 minutes ago, BuckGup said:

What a moronic thing to say. If you don't care give me your passwords to every account you have and also your bank accounts all your relatives names and while you are at it SSN. 

That's not what they mean. They're talking about data whose use doesn't directly affect them. (Negatively, that is)

[Java]

I know its impossible to be totally anonymous (or at least really inconvenient to be) on the internet, but I say the less a company knows about me the better. 

[BuckGup]

9 minutes ago, Fez_Boy said:

That's not what they mean. They're talking about data whose use doesn't directly affect them. (Negatively, that is)

It always has the possibility to affect you and everyone around you. 

[Teddy07]

2 hours ago, BuckGup said:

What a moronic thing to say. If you don't care give me your passwords to every account you have and also your bank accounts all your relatives names and while you are at it SSN. 

Of course, there are things that you do not want to share but I was not speaking about them

[RejZoR]

Saying "Coz they already spy on us everywhere we shouldn't care anymore" is the dumbest argument ever. And a reason why these corporations are pushing the boundaries even further with every passing day.

 

It's really not that hard getting away from these spying corporations and the last thing would be sticking their listening devices in your bloody home.

 

I've ditched everything from Google and I'm not using any social networks that are oversteeping their service space. Only thing left that I'm still using is Android device because alternatives are frigging non existent. Unless I go with Apple or a phone that is supported by LineageOS and use it without Gapps. In which case I might just as well buy a feature phone brick...