Big ears are everywhere, and everyone really IS out to get you ... 🗣️
Or, at least, marketers & data brokers ARE out to get your data & sell it. News on 'Active Listening' on your phone and those pesky, tedious app T&Cs we mostly don't read. (audio; 5:30)
You know those anecdotes we’ve heard about how some people feel like their cell phones might be listening to their ‘offline’ in-person conversations and selling that info to marketers? And we’ve wondered if there’s anything to it?
Many people have scoffed at these concerns, and some technical people have put forth seemingly logical explanations for why this apparent behavior doesn’t mean we’re being spied upon (e.g. 1).
But those suspicions might not be wrong after all.
What’s the evidence?
Newsweek reported this month that 404 Media had uncovered a CMG “pitch deck” advertising an ‘active listening’ feature.2 As reported by 404 Media 3 (also found via Windows Central 4):
“404 Media previously reported Cox Media Group (CMG) was advertising a service that claimed to target ads based on what potential customers said near device microphones. Now, here is the pitch deck CMG sent to prospective companies. Google has kicked CMG off its Partner Program in response.”
The Windows Central article includes an archive link to a now-deleted CMG blog post 5 which explains (brags) about Active Listening.
404 media archives include a number of earlier podcasts and articles about companies ‘listening’ to us. CMG is not the only firm doing this. 6
CMG apparently claims that they do not offer this feature [any more]. However, Google has ended CMG’s partner relationship, and other major platforms report that they are also examining their CMG relationships. What does that tell us? 🤔
How do they do it?
By silently activating your cell phone’s microphone and listening to it.
The app has to already have microphone permissions. Whoever installed or updated the app would have had to grant the microphone permissions to it. (It would be easy to not realize that this could let the app listen to you at any time, not just while using the app).
In his upcoming “AI, Software, & Wetware” interview, featured guest
shares an anecdote about an offbeat offline conversation with a friend that turned into an Amazon shopping recommendation.How do they get away with this?
By burying your ‘consent’ to ‘active listening’ deep inside those pesky, tedious Terms and Conditions for use of an app.
According to the Newsweek article:
“The third-party data referred to by CMG often comes from smartphone apps that capture data (voice or otherwise) based on the end user agreeing to the terms and conditions. However, research has shown that 91 percent of people agree to T&Cs without reading them. This jumps to 97 percent for those aged 18-24.”
What can I do to stop it?
Check microphone permissions on all of the apps on your phone (or tablet, or laptop). Only grant permissions that are absolutely needed, only when needed.
For instance, if an app wants ‘background’ access to your microphone, think about whether that’s absolutely necessary for the app to work for you. Or if the app wants permission all the time, but really only needs it while you’re actively using the app, restrict it. In the Newsweek article, researcher and Norton Security Evangelist Luis Corrons advises:
“only allow Siri or Alexa to activate when using the wake word and disable listening when the device is locked.”
What else should I know?
Phone apps can get lots of data about you - and about people you know - without using the microphone. You can restrict this, too. 7
For instance, if an app doesn’t absolutely need access to your Contacts, consider denying it. (This not only helps to protect you, it helps to protect the people in your Contacts.) iOS 18 promises to allow us to control app access to individual contacts 8. For now, it’s all or nothing; if it works for you, ‘nothing’ is safest.
If you’re concerned about location privacy, you might want to reduce the number of apps given location access, or allowed to see your precise location. 9
Also consider reducing the number that have push notifications enabled. Notifications are geo-tagged behind the scenes, and appear to be monitored 10.
Or you may want to go all out and ‘de-Alexa’ your house, like “AI, Software, & Wetware” interview guest Tracy Bannon did recently.
End Notes
“Your Social Media Apps are Not Listening to You': Tech Worker Explains Data Privacy in Viral Twitter Thread”, by Sara Santora / Newsweek, 2021-05-26.
“Is Your Phone Really Listening to You? Here's What We Know”, by Marie Boran / Newsweek, 2024-09-07.
“Here’s the Pitch Deck for ‘Active Listening’ Ad Targeting”, by Joseph Cox / 404 Media, 2024-08-26.
“Active Listening: An Overview”, by Justin Wenokur / CMG blog, 2023-11-28.
Articles on 404 Media by Joseph Cox on this topic:
“Podcast: These Companies Say They're Using Microphone Audio to Target Ads”, Joseph Cox / 404 Media, 2023-12-21 (audio link)
“Company Brags About Using Smart Device Microphone Audio to Target Ads on Their Podcast”, Jason Koebler & Joseph Cox / 404 Media (paywalled), 2023-12-15. (MindSift)
“Marketing Company Claims That It Actually Is Listening to Your Phone and Smart Speakers to Target Ads”, Joseph Cox / 404 Media (paywalled), 2023-12-14. (CMG, Cox Media Group)
“You Can Finally Control Which Contacts an App Can Access on Your iPhone: Don't let apps scrape your entire address book.”, Pranay Parab / Lifehacker, 2024-07-02.
“Here's a Warrant Showing the U.S. Government is Monitoring Push Notifications”, Joseph Cox / 404 Media, 2023-12-06.
This sounds icky. Very icky indeed. Great post, thank you for the insight!
Ha, very timely. Privacy seems to be under attack like never before.
I use Alexa for exactly two functions: (1) a voice-controlled alarm clock / timer, and (2) a list-keeper. The convenience of shouting "Alexa, add Oyster Sauce to my shopping list" WHILE you are cooking and have the almost-empty bottle in hand, is difficult to beat.
I have long used Home Assistant (homeassistant.io) for cloudless home automation. They recently added support for local voice assistants, where all processing is done locally. I already have the hardware, and replacing Alexa with a private assistant is about three projects down my to-do list.
Their options include building the assistant into an old landline phone. So you have to pick up the receiver to talk to it, and you have the assurance that there is nothing listening all the time.