Question Would love to use assistant when cooking...

[tpapictures]

The problem is that I absolutely do not want Google recording my voice. Is there any way to take advantage of the Voice Assistant benefits without having Google keep my voice recordings?

Thanks!

 

[rvbfan]

Under assistant settings scroll down to help improve how assistant activates uncheck this.

 

[tpapictures]

Under assistant settings scroll down to help improve how assistant activates uncheck this.

And that completely removes any chance of recording what I say after Hey Google, or Ok Google?

 

[rvbfan]

All I can go by is Google's own documentation, it says that any voices recorded remain on the device unless shared with Google. The directions I gave above remove sharing with Google.

 

[tpapictures]

All I can go by is Google's own documentation, it says that any voices recorded remain on the device unless shared with Google. The directions I gave above remove sharing with Google.

So you can turn on "Hey Google" and even Federated learning but not have any of that get uploaded to Google and only stay on your device for 63 days. Is that more or less it?

 

[VidJunky]

I get it, who wants to be tracked, recorded and monetized but the reality of it is they have so much on you just by owning and using their device that opting out here and there is pointless. Sure you say don't record my voice using assistant but later say it's OK to record your voice when you use Google Translate or some other app. I'm not saying that being cautious isn't prudent but in the end all we have is their word that they aren't collecting this data already and frankly they have all been caught lying and cheating too many times to actually believe them, IMO. Later they will tell you that certain things won't work or won't work as well if you don't, XYZ, whatever that ends up being. Letting them keep a 30 day record of your voice so they can offer you better service or make more personal suggestions to you and with AI rolling out on many devices it is only going to get worse or better, depending on how you look at it. In the meantime it comes down to do you trust them to do what they say or not? If not opt out, and avoid the service altogether. If so, trust they aren't recording you when you say "please don't" and use the service. Unfortunately we cannot guarantee making this change changes anything.

Just as an example if you've caught any of the coverage out of Georgia regarding the former president, if you really want to be concerned about privacy, look at how through and detailed they were able to be tracking Nathan Wade's cellphone movement from over 4 years ago. They could see what neighborhood he was in, at what time and for how long from over 4 years ago and that is just piddly little carrier. Now imagine Google or maybe we should try not to imagine what they know and from how long ago.

In the meantime best wishes and I hope your recipes come out delicious.

 

[tpapictures]

they have so much on you just by owning and using their device that opting out here and there is pointless

That's not necessarily true. Unless you accept as a definitive that things are recording or being tracked even when you've turned everything off. Also depends what you define as "recording and being tracked". Few people go to the lengths I go to to remove all permissions on their phones.

 

[VidJunky]

I'm just saying that they seem to get what they want one way or another. In the meantime, for me, IMHO, it still comes down to if you trust that they are doing or not doing what they say they are. I mean how long did Apple collect detailed location data on people before the "temporary" file saving it all was found? Then we started seeing it everywhere, in most apps, on most devices. The crazy thing is it was probably listed it in the TOS but no one reads those they just "accept" and keep it rolling or try to cheery pick stuff and don't look back. When you couple this with how corrupt they prove themselves to be by censoring factual information or bumping items to the 20th result page, doing everything they can to make your device the most addictive thing in your life so it is always in your hand or on your person, I say we can't trust them as far as we can throw them. You say you're being careful and I can't argue, but have you ever Googled yourself or typed your name into Truth Finder? It's just the world we live in and using "their" devices that they allow you believe is yours and all of the bells and whistles that come with that device there's there is very little hiding. But hey I'm just a skeptic that has seen things find or follow me through email changes, new account setups, name changes and account "deletions". Seeing an account I deleted 5 years ago popup as a suggestion when they told me I'd have 45 days to reclaim the account or everything was gone forever.

Sorry I've gone on and on like this. It wasn't my intention, I'm just wordy. See any of my other posts around here as proof. I find soapboxes everywhere and tend to overstay my time on top of them. I have no doubt you're diligent and I wish you the best.