"Secret messages for Alexa and Co.
Researchers can hide secret commands for voice assistants in spoken sentences, birds' twittering, or music. They are not audible to the human ear. The machine recognises them precisely."
Is your digital assistant taking orders behind your back? Scientists from China's Zheijiang University have proved it's possible, publishing new research that demonstrates how Siri, Alexa, and other voice-activated programs can be controlled using inaudible ultrasound commands.
"In an exclusive interview, a top Google exec says the AI could eventually recognize if you're frustrated or pick up conversations where you left off."
"This is one of the minor dangers of owning an Amazon Echo. Most anyone can activate the device by just saying the wake word, including Cartman. And in the season opener of South Park, that's exactly what happened.
If someone watched that episode of South Park in the same room as an Echo, their Amazon shopping list was filled with random, gross items.
This example shows the potential danger of having a voice-activated shopping assistant. It's easy to imagine a potential rogue advertisement, online or elsewhere, that could, in theory, say the right words to order a particular product - like a South Park box set."