Is your phone really listening to your conversations?

Have you ever come across online ads for a certain product right after you talked about it and thought, “Oh, that’s weird.” What are the odds of something like this happening? Could your phone be so smart that it’s listening to your private conversations to serve up these ads? This is a question that’s been asked by users everywhere, and with some personal experiences raising doubts, it’s time to explore the truth behind this eerie phenomenon.

Well, it’s not so astronomical if you believe a leaked report that finally confirms what many people have believed for years. Check out Is Amazon’s Alexa Monitoring and Spying on You?

The slideshow proves what we've all believed for years.

In December 2023, it was revealed that 404 Media Here are some interesting details about Cox Media Group (CMG)’s website that might worry you. I found that the company listed “active listening,” a supposed advertising capability that could apparently target ads to potential customers based on what they say out loud near their device’s microphones. CMG later deleted this information, 404 Media reports.

Many smart devices have cameras and microphones that are always on, listening in the background for trigger words and phrases to come to life — phrases like “Hey Siri” and “OK Google.”

404 Media says it has a business marketing pitch that CMG has reportedly shown to at least one company. The pitch shows how CMG pitched “active listening” to its potential clients. The pitch deck boasts of what it could do: “Advertisers can pair… audio data with behavioral data to target consumers in-market.”

It's not clear how this data might be collected or from what sources: whether through a smart TV microphone, an always-listening smart speaker, or a specific smartphone app.

scale of things

More worrying are the claims that CMG has partnered with big names like Google, Amazon, and Facebook. 404 Media also posted images of a couple of slides from the presentation, one with pricing information for potential advertisers and another about how the ads intend to target audiences.

During a 404 Media report on CMG and active listening, I also found strong evidence that it is an active program. For example, one page on CMG’s website states, “What would it mean for your business if you could target prospects who are actively discussing their needs for your services in their daily conversations? No, it’s not an episode of Black Mirror — it’s audio data, and CMG has the power to use it to your advantage.” The page has now been deleted, but it makes the point clear.

How to Stop Your Smartphone from Listening to You

We’re surrounded by internet-connected devices, and we’ve become increasingly dependent on them. So it can be hard to stop our phones from listening to us or our smart TV from monitoring us. It’s even harder to protect your privacy when using Alexa.

However, there are a few things you can do. First, you can prevent Google Assistant from listening to you on your iPhone or Android device. Additionally, you can disable individual apps from accessing your device’s microphone.

On Android: Go to Settings -> Apps -> (select a specific app) > Click on Permissions -> Microphone -> Select to reject Or option Disable permissions.

On iOS: Go to Settings -> Privacy & Security -> Microphone -> Uncheck specific apps to block access to microphone.

This latest revelation shakes the faith many users have in tech companies and big ad networks. However, there may be a glimmer of hope. Following 404 Media inquiries, Google said it is no longer working with CMG following an internal review, with Amazon and Meta taking similar steps.

All advertisers must comply with all Laws and Regulations applicable in addition to policies Google Ads Our policies, and when we identify ads or advertisers that violate these policies, we will take appropriate action.

One thing is certainThis digitally connected age comes at a high cost — privacy. If it’s not our phones listening to our conversations, it’s companies training their AI models on our social media data. Read now: AI and Privacy Risks: Protecting Your Data in a Robotic World.