According to a report published last week, Amazon exploits speech data from its Echo devices to provide tailored adverts on its platforms and the internet.
According to the paper, Amazon’s practises are incompatible with its privacy regulations, according to academics from the University of Washington, UC Davis, UC Irvine, and Northeastern University.
The report, titled “Your Echos are Heard: Tracking, Profiling, and Ad Targeting in the Amazon Smart Speaker Ecosystem,” concludes that Amazon and third parties (such as advertising and tracking services) collect data from your interactions with Alexa via Echo smart speakers and share it with up to 41 advertising partners.
This information is then used to “infer user interests” and “deliver tailored adverts both on-platform (on Echo devices) and off-platform (on the web).” It also believes that this type of data is in high demand, with advertisers bidding “30X higher ad bids.”
Amazon acknowledged to The Verge that voice data from Alexa interactions is used to inform relevant adverts displayed on Amazon and other sites where Amazon runs ads.
“If you ask Alexa to order paper towels or play a song on Amazon Music, the record of that purchase or song play may inform relevant ads shown on Amazon or other sites where Amazon places ads, similar to what you’d experience if you made a purchase on Amazon.com or requested a song through Amazon Music.” In an email, Amazon representative Lauren Raemhild said.
The corporation also admitted that its smart speakers display tailored advertisements. “When customers utilise ad-supported premium content – like music, radio, or news streams – they may receive interest-based adverts,” Raemhild explained, adding that they would have had the same experience if they engaged with the content on other channels.
She went on to add that Amazon does not provide developers access to voice recordings. “Within their skills, developers obtain the information they need to fulfil your requests, such as answers when you play a trivia game or the name of the song you wish to play,” she explained. “Without the customer’s approval, we do not share our customers’ personal information with third-party services.” Users of Amazon’s Alexa can also opt out of ad targeting (see sidebar).
The report’s ten authors, led by Umar Iqbal, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Washington, developed an auditing framework to track the acquisition of internet advertising data.
They then built a number of personas to engage with Alexa using third-party skills, each with its own set of hobbies, such as spirituality, connected cars, smart homes, pets, fashion, dating, navigation, beverages, and health.
As a control, they constructed a “vanilla” character.
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