I use my voice to do a lot of things. Siri organizes meetings for me, silence my phone, and much more. Tap or click for five simple voice commands you’ll use all the time.
An Amazon Echo can help you find your phone, lock the front door, and chat with loved ones. Tap or click the things I always ask Alexa to help me with.
What’s the downside to always-on devices that listen for commands? Almost all voice-activated technologies use microphones that listen for “wake words”. This means that they are, technically, always listening.
If you want to take control of your privacy, here’s how to stop your smart devices from eavesdropping.
Outsmart Facebook
Facebook sometimes requests access to the microphone for video chat and text-to-speech purposes. You might not feel comfortable give control to facebook of your microphone. You can follow these steps for any app you want to block access to the mic.
Note: There are many Android manufacturers. Therefore, the steps in this article may differ from your model. If so, check your model’s online manual.
For iphone:
- Open the Settings application. Next, scroll down and tap Facebook.
- Flip the green switch next to Microphone to off position.
You can also follow these steps:
- Open the Settings application. Next, scroll down and tap Privacy and Security.
- Locate the menu titled Microphone and press it.
- Find Facebook in the list of apps and toggle the green switch to off position.
For Android:
- Open the Settings app, then touch apps.
- Tap the app you want to edit, in this case Facebook.
- Picking out permissions. To change a permission setting, tap it, then choose from these options: Allow only when using the app, Ask every time, or Don’t allow.
If you decide to shoot a video or chat with a friend, go back to those settings and turn on your mic. You can always turn it off again when you’re done.
A Facebook logo.
(Reuters pictures)
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Discontinuation of voice assistants
It’s common knowledge that virtual assistants can pick up snippets of private conversations if you say something like the word wake up. A study described 1,000 phrases that triggered Alexa, Siri, Cortana and Google.
If you are worried about your gadget’s always-on microphone, here are the steps to turn it off. Just know you trade convenience for privacy.
Amazon Echo
- On your Echo device, look for the button that looks like a microphone or a circle with a line through it.
- Push the button. This prevents the device from passing voltage through the internal components of the mic.
- If you want to use Alexa, just press the button again. You can always mute the microphone when not in use or during a private conversation.
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Siri
- Open the Settings app on your iPhone. Scroll down and tap Siri and Search.
- Toggle the green switch next to “Listen to ‘Hey Siri'” on the off position.
- You can also turn off Allow Siri when locked to prevent Siri from activating if you press a button in your pocket.
The new AirPods offer the convenience of “Hey Siri”, making it easy to change songs, make a call, adjust the volume, or get directions.
(Apple)
Google Assistant
On Android:
- Open the Settings app on your phone, then choose apps.
- Under General, tap Assistantthen View all wizard settings.
- From there, you can click the toggle to enable off “Hey Google.”
On iOS:
- Open the Settings application. Scroll down and tap Privacy and Security.
- Locate the menu titled Microphone and press it.
- Find Google Assistant in the list of apps and toggle the green switch to off position.
Cortana on Windows 10
- Click it Start menu buttonthen Settings.
- Click on Privacy > Voice activation.
- Locate Microphone in the left panel and click on it.
- Scroll down to Cortana and toggle the microphone permission to off.
Cortana on Windows 11
- Click it Start menu buttonthen Settings.
- Click on Privacy and Security > Voice activation.
- Under Allow apps to access voice activation services, disable Cortana.
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Smart security systems also listen
Even home security devices have always-listening microphones. You can disable audio recording on two popular home security devices: Google Nest and AmazonRing.
Google Nest
- Open the Nest on your smartphone and select the application camera on the home screen.
- Faucet Settings.
- To select Microphone. Then press the switch to turn it on off.
Amazon ring
- Open the Ring app on your smartphone and select the device you want to die.
- Faucet Device settings followed by Video Settings.
- Tap the Audio Streaming and Recording toggle to enable off the mic.
Nest Learning Thermostat displaying the Google logo inside a smart home in Lafayette, California on January 17, 2021.
(Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)
Your smart TV
If you want to stop your smart TV from listening to you and analyzing your channel browsing history, check out our step-by-step guide to disabling these features on TVs made by Samsung, VIZIO, LG and more.
Tap or click here to see the easiest ways to stop your smart TV from tracking you
Keep your technological know-how
My popular podcast is called “Kim Commando todayIt’s a solid 30 minutes of tech news, tips, and callers with tech questions like you from across the country. Look for it wherever you get your podcasts. For your convenience, click the link below for a recent episode.
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Check out my “Kim Komando Today” podcast on Apple, Google Podcasts, Spotifyor your favorite podcast player.
Listen to the podcast here or wherever you get your podcasts. Just search for my last name, “Komando”.
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