Find Out Whether Your Smart Home Is Spying on You​ Javascript must be enabled to use this site. Please enable Javascript in your browser and try again. × Search search POPULAR SEARCHES SUGGESTED LINKS Join AARP for just $9 per year when you sign up for a 5-year term. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. Leaving AARP.org Website You are now leaving AARP.org and going to a website that is not operated by AARP. A different privacy policy and terms of service will apply. Close

Is Your Smart Home Spying on You

Your gadgets and gear may be listening Here s how to turn them all off

AMAZON When you type words into your search engine such as “vacation” or “trip,” seeing airline or hotel you read later is no coincidence. Sound familiar? Many internet users have grown to accept targeted advertisements. But now that we’re using our voices to control our smart TV, smart speakers and other devices, is what we’re saying also being used to collect information on us? The short answer: yes and no. Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. These devices aren’t listening to your conversations. But once you enable the microphone by saying its wake word on a smart speaker or pressing a microphone button on, say, a smart TV remote, whatever you say next likely will be used to better market products to you. Most of us blindly allow companies to use our information when we click OK on the fine-print agreements we see as we set up our gadgets. After all, the terms and conditions legalese can be difficult to decipher. Still, many users are understandably concerned about Big Brother.

What s done with your data

Your data is valuable to all kinds of companies. may want to know what you’re asking to view and could sell this information to eager advertisers. Similarly, what you listen to on , the kinds of social media posts you like, or what you’re typing into search engines is all valuable to the companies that provide these services, as well as advertisers, data brokers, search and browser companies and social media platforms. Companies will tell you targeted ads help you see more relevant information and give you a better experience with your browsing session. If you “like” and comment on Facebook posts tied to playing golf, you may see more golf-related ads in your web browser — instead of seeing ads about playing drums. Or by allowing your smartphone to when you type "coffee" in Google Maps, it will show you what's near you and not in another city or state. You get the idea. . But many people still feel the practice is, well, creepy.
Smart speakers have another reason to record and process what you say: It helps make the experience better over time with your Amazon Echo, Apple HomePod or Google Home device. The data can make your interaction with the digital assistant more accurate and faster as it learns how you say certain words.

Data can be shared among devices too

Google Assistant can be found built into devices other than its Nest series of smart speakers. The Harman Kardon Citation One MKIII was introduced in 2022. GETTY IMAGES Recordings of your voice also personalize your device, allowing it to give better suggestions and answers. If you train your smart speaker to recognize the voices in your household, it gives you custom information. Ask what’s on tap for the day and hear only your specific calendar entries instead of the whole family’s. Technology & Wireless 20% off online printing services with promo code SAVE See more Technology & Wireless offers > Your speakers also can use the information you give them to target ads you will see on your computer or phone. If you ask your Google Home speaker to order dog food, you may find pet nutrition ads when you launch your Google Chrome browser. Smart speakers themselves are actually quite dumb. The hardware itself is a conduit for uploading your queries over the internet to servers that process your requests and send the responses back down to the speaker. And your speakers are not recording anything you say before you wake them up. Only after you use the wake word — such as “Alexa” for Amazon Echo, “Hey, Siri” for Apple HomePod or “OK, Google” for Google Home — does the speaker start listening.

How to turn your smart speaker TV off

If you’re nervous about all this data collection, you can disconnect. But if you enjoy the convenience of using voice, which many find more intuitive compared to typing, and you don’t want to give up your speakers or smart TV, consider some steps for added privacy. On most smart TVs, you will turn off snooping automatic content recognition (ACR) technology. But how you go about it will vary with your TV’s make and model. AARP Membership — $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. , but the ads won’t necessarily be relevant to you. An app developer can customize part of the message to explain why the app is asking to track your activity. You also can visit the app’s product page in the App Store for more details about how the app developer uses your data. Marc Saltzman is a contributing writer who covers personal technology. His work also appears in USA Today and other national publications. He hosts the podcast series and is the author of several books, including Apple Watch for Dummies. MORE FROM AARP AARP NEWSLETTERS %{ newsLetterPromoText }% %{ description }% Subscribe AARP VALUE & MEMBER BENEFITS See more Entertainment offers > See more Technology & Wireless offers > See more Technology & Wireless offers > See more Travel offers > SAVE MONEY WITH THESE LIMITED-TIME OFFERS