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Comment by ashtonkem | Hacker News Reader

I genuinely cannot understand the mentality of purposefully wiring your home with microphones connected to the cloud, and then becoming worried about privacy.

Like, you’re doing this to yourself. Amazon did not hold a gun to your head to install Alexa everywhere. Maybe just … throw them out? Also, if you’re worried about the privacy implications of the Astro, don’t buy it.

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The owner isn't the only party involved here. Anyone entering their house (or ringing their doorbell) becomes an (unwilling) participant in this surveillance apparatus.

You're not just doing this to yourself, you're doing this to everyone you're interacting with at home, on your doorstep, or on speaker phone.

I have a smart phone so I’m only so immune to this invasion but there is no way in hell I’m trusting Amazon, a company I’m learning to despise, with a microphone or camera in my house.

The privacy cost of these devices is largely hidden. People are really bad at judging the long term and secondary/tertiary effects of their actions, they only see the immediate benefit. This is how the dystopian surveillance state grows.

If people can’t figure out that bugging your own home is a bad idea, then we’re doomed. That was obviously bad from the get go, I’m shocked anyone did it.

Also, isn’t the echo dot like, $25? How did people not look at that and go “hmm, how is it that cheap?”

> “$25 ... hmm, how is it that cheap?”

because it is $5 of cheap electronics?

All I’ve ever been able to discern about it is that people will sell the farm to never have to think about something, even if that something is a grocery list.

Totally agree. The last thing I would do is allow an ad company or online seller invade my home with their closed widgets.

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