Now that you know how to set up Google Now let’s take a closer look at OK Google. If you want to use the app comfortably, you’ll need to know to what commands it will respond. And there are quite a few of them!
The post OK Google – the voice commands appeared first on Avira Blog.
You probably all know about Siri and how great it works – but what about Google Now and Ok Google?
The post Google Now & Ok Google – The Basics appeared first on Avira Blog.
Apple’s iOS 9 contains a security flaw that lets cybercriminals gain limited access to a device through Siri.
The post iOS 9 security flaw lets attackers access device through Siri appeared first on We Live Security.
Amazon is among the technology companies trying to seize the IoT space, and voice activation technology is a key part of the puzzle – as is artificial intelligence.
With its newly enhanced product, Amazon Echo (with Alexa), the company may do the trick, based on rave reviews amidst its recent (July 14) roll-out, which included going beyond beta phase and adding services. The device is now available to anyone, not just Amazon Prime members, who were the first to give it a try.
Basically, Echo is designed around the user’s voice, and is a hands-free speaker system that connects you to the outside world. It gradually adapts to the user’s voice and inflection.
It has seven microphones and the device connects to Alexa, a cloud-based voice service, to provide information, answer questions, play music, read the news, check sports scores or the weather, and more. So think of it as a smartphone service without the smartphone and you begin to get the picture…
Echo plays music from Amazon Music, Prime Music, Pandora, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, and other systems. If you want to wake up in the morning to Eye of the Tiger, just say “Alexa” and ask.
But there is more. For example, it’s compatible with Philips Hue connected-devices so that you can control lights and switches with your voice. As industry analyst Tim Bajarin wrote in his review on PC Magazine: “You can expect Amazon to get light switches, door locks, appliances, and more connected to the Echo so it becomes the central control point for an eventual home information and automation system.
Amazon is throwing serious money behind its voice recognition plans in hopes to become a key player. It has put $100 million dollars into The Alexa Fund to “fuel voice technology innovation.” So, the race is on.
It’s fascinating to me how IoT, voice commands, technology, convenience, and modern ideas are all converging. It’s an exciting time to be in tech, to be sure.
Finally, on a side note: I find intriguing that Alexa is again molded in a woman’s voice, soothing like Siri. Is this because all the programmers (or marketers) are trying to reach the key decision makers in the smart home – or were so frightened by HAL in Stanley Kubrick’s Space Odyssey and his representation of an AI-based future? But I’ll save that as a topic for another day…
This post is about cool things you can do with Siri, and some you might wish it didn’t do. Stick with me to the end of this post, and I’ll even share with you a funny video of what Siri “really” looks like…
This somewhat melodramatic title was posted on TheRegister and reports incoming messages that trigger a bug in the iOS, inducing applications to crash…
The solution?
Apple suggests Siri as a temporary fix (full instructions here). One of the options includes asking Siri to “reply to the malicious message”. That’s right – if you’re being picked on by a big bad hacker who is sending you “messages of death”, get big sister Siri to reply with a digital tongue-lashing – sweet!
Back in 2014, there was excitement surrounding the application called GoogolPLex, which hooked up a hacked version of Siri to the Internet of things. Suddenly you could use Siri for all sorts of applications, as seen in this video:
What’s particularly clever, is the name: “GoogolPlex, turn on the lights” is actually understood by Siri as “Google, please turn on the lights”. Then, instead of running a Google search, GoogolPlex redirects the requests to its servers and uses API’s that interact with your hardware to process your requests.
GoogolPlex, beam me up!
You love using Siri? She is a great listener (granted, with dubious hearing). However, if you’re also a staunch believe in privacy, you might want to reconsider what it is exactly you tell your beloved assistant. As reported in this post, all voice recordings are stored for 6 months, after which time they keep the recording for another 18 months but delete the number associated with it… In case you’re now thinking of switching to Microsoft’s equally friendly Cortana, the policy is very similar…
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And now, for a look at what Siri looks like, as seen in Raj’s vivid imagination (from the Big Bang Theory):
The post What Can Siri Help You With Today? appeared first on Avira Blog.
Smartphones and wearable devices have introduced a brave new world in the way that humans and computers interact. While on the PC we used the keyboard and mouse, touch-based devices and wearables have removed the need for peripherals and we can now interact with them using nothing more than our hands or even our voices.
This has prompted the arrival of the voice activated “personal assistantâ€. Activated by nothing more than our voices, these promise to help us with some basic tasks in a hands-free way. Both Apple and Google added voice recognition technologies to their smart devices. Siri and Google Now are indeed personal assistants for our modern life.
Both Siri and Google Now can record our voice, translate it into text and execute commands on our device – from calling to texting to sending emails and many more.
However, these voice recognition technologies – that are so necessary on smart devices – are perhaps not as secure as we give them credit for. After all, they are not configured to our individual voices. Anyone can ask your Google Now to make a call or send a text message and it will dutifully oblige – even if it’s not your voice asking.
What if your device is vulnerable to voice commands from someone else? What if it could call a premium number, send a text message abroad, or write an email from your account without your knowledge. Over–the-air-attacks on voice recognition technologies are real, and they are not limited just to smartphones. Voice activation technologies are also coming to smart connected devices at home, like your smart TV.
As I demonstrate in this short video, the smart devices in my home do respond to my voice, however they also respond to ANY voice command, even one synthesized by another device in my home.
The convenience of being able to control the temperature of your home, unlock the front door and make purchases online all via voice command is an exciting and very real prospect. However, we need to make progress with the authentication of the voice source. For example, will children be able to access inappropriate content if devices can’t tell if it is a child speaking or a parent?
Being able to issue commands to my television might not be the most dangerous thing in the world but new smart devices, connected to the Internet of Things are being introduced every day. It may not be an issue to change the station on my television, but being able to issue commands to connected home security systems, smart home assistance, vehicles and connected work spaces is not far away.
Utilizing voice activation technology in the Internet of Things without authenticating the source of the voice is like leaving your computer without a password – everyone can use it and send commands.
There is no question that voice activation technology is exciting, but it also needs to be secure. That means, making sure that the commands are provided from a trusted source. Otherwise, even playing a voice from a speaker or an outside source can lead to unauthorized actions by a device that is simply designed to help.
While we haven’t discovered any samples of malware taking advantage of this exploit in the wild yet, it is certainly an area for concern that device manufacturers and operating system developers should take into account when building for the future. As is so often the case with technology, convenience can come at a risk to privacy or security and it seems that voice activation is no different.
