Amazon Uses Alexa Voice Data To Target Users With Ads Across The Web: Research

Do you enjoy talking to your smart devices like Amazon's Alexa? Turns out, Amazon and third parties use data collected from smart speakers to sell you stuff, a research has found.

The report, produced by a coterie of researchers from University of Washington, UC Davis, UC Irvine, and Northeastern University said that Amazon's practices for its Echo range of smart speaker devices is inconsistent with its privacy policies.

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According to the report, Amazon is essentially collecting data about your interactions with Alexa through its Echo speakers. What's worrying is that Amazon shares this data with about 41 advertising partners. Based on this, the data is used to "infer user interests" and to "serve targeted ads on-platform (Echo speakers) as well as off-platform (web)," The Verge reported.

Voice data means more revenue for Amazon

Such data is extremely profitable for Amazon. The report says that it helps Amazon get "30x higher ad bids from advertisers." The company confirmed to The Verge that it indeed uses voice data from Alexa to deliver customised ads.

If you use an Alexa enabled Echo device and do not want targeted ads, you can turn off ads from Amazon's Advertising Preferences page. For Alexa devices, you can control privacy through additional controls in the Alexa app.

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Also read: Evil AI? Alexa 'Challenges' Child To Touch Live Electric Plug With Metal Coin

For the study's purpose, researchers created various personas that reflect different interests ranging from spirituality, dating, fashion, to health. They found that each persona was served targeted ads everywhere on the web based on their interaction with Echo devices.

According to the researchers, this implies that "smart-speaker interactions are used for the purpose of targeting ads, and that this ad targeting implies significant data sharing across multiple parties."

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It's important to note here that only processed transcripts were shared with advertisers and not raw audio. Amazon, claims that the study's conclusions are "inaccurate" and "do not accurately reflect how Alexa works."

Also read: It¡¯s As Easy As Talking To A Friend! Yup, That¡¯s My Alexa Journey So Far

Do you regularly use smart speakers like Amazon's Echo series supported by Alexa? Let us know what you think in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com.

References

Tuohy, J. P. (2022, April 28). Report shows that Amazon uses data from Alexa smart speakers to serve targeted ads. The Verge.