‘Smart’ devices may record all your conversations

One of this year’s most popular Christmas gifts is becoming a big topic of discussion. Devices like Amazon’s Echo respond to voice commands, but some people are curious to know how much of their day-to-day conversations are being recorded. “There’s a good possibility that everything you say is being recorded and not only your ears are hearing it. Who knows who else’s ears are hearing it,” said one skeptical “smart” device user. Tech expert, Noah Yaghoubian says most smart devices should only start recording when a designated “hot-word” is used, like Siri, or Alexa, but it’s not guaranteed. “No electronic device is perfect, and there are things that go wrong. As far as knowing if it is recording, for an average user, like you or your friend, you would never know that it’s recording,” said Yaghoubian. There are some ways to help protect your privacy. “You need to make sure that your password is strong, so at least eight characters or more, an upper case, a lower case letter, a number, special characters. It’s recommended to change it every 30 days,” continued Yaghoubian. A Yahoo finance report says Samsung’s Smart TV, Microsoft’s Kinect, Google Chrome, Nest Cam, Canary Connect, Amazon Echo, and Mattel’s Hello Barbie are likely to always be recording conversations in its reach.