As more people install smart speakers like Amazon Echo, Google Home and Apple HomePod in their homes, questions whether these devices present a security risk have begun to surface. Is your smart speaker spying on you? Does it put your privacy at risk? The fact that you have a device that is actively listening to everything you say — waiting for command words, like “Alexa” and “Siri” — opens up the possibility of your data being misused, or even intercepted by hackers.
As with all “smart home” devices, the convenience of the technology is not without risk. For example, if you buy a security camera, or even a baby monitor, the devices ship with default passwords that are well known by hackers. If people don’t change the password, then it’s possible for hackers to access them. While many, even most people may read the instructions and change the password, countless others ignore this advice and simply leave the default settings, potentially letting malicious people have eyes on their home. This is dangerous in two ways: the first is that your activities can be recorded, and the second is that these cameras can show when you are not home, allowing criminals to know when it’s safe to burglarize your house.
With voice activated smart speakers, it’s a bit different.
Read the rest of the article on The Mac Security Blog.