Is Your Computer Spying on You?

We’re used to having access to technology in almost every aspect of our lives. Our phones help us figure out directions, watch a whole season of a TV show in a day, and even split the bill on an order of french fries. One day we came to a shocking realization: We blindly accept terms and conditions and allow cookies on every single site. Are we too much in the dark about digital safety and privacy? Short answer: Yes. But by actually reading the fine print of our favorite apps’ policies and talking to experts, we found out we don’t need to ditch our devices . . . but we could probably be a bit more careful. Here, we’re sharing answers to the questions that have been bugging us forever. Use them to keep your own digital life on lockdown. 

Have you ever been talking about something—maybe complimenting your friend on her new backpack—and a few minutes later Instagram shows you an ad for exactly that? We have. And we can’t shake the icky feeling that someone is listening to our casual conversations and using that info to advertise to us.

What we uncovered: It’s not just us. Last year, a group of computer scientists at Northeastern University heard so many people talking about this conspiracy theory that they decided to investigate it themselves. Their study found no evidence that any of the 17,000 apps they tested (including Instagram) were using the phone’s mic to capture audio, but that doesn’t mean you can totally relax around your devices. Remember: All your favorite artificial intelligence (AI) helpers— Google Home, Amazon Echo, Siri, and Alexa—are built to be able to respond to you once you use the trigger phrase, like Hey, Siri or Alexa. Most of these interactions are recorded, although the robots’ makers claim they don’t sell this data to advertisers.

How to lock it down: Even if your conversations aren’t being sent to advertisers, privacy concerns are still valid. Maybe we’re turning into a broken record, but once again, the first key is in your settings. This time, if you’re using an AI helper, check its activity page and make sure it isn’t recording anything you don’t want recorded. Disable access to your mic on any apps that don’t need it. And if you have the voice helper enabled on your phone, you can turn it off and settle for scrolling manually—even if you’re a little bit slower than Siri.