The piece of technology that we are becoming more accustomed to, and that is influencing the way we live, that I have decided to look at would be Smart Speakers, that of Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and the like. For this, I will specifically look at and refer to the Google Home as it is the one I personally own. To begin with, the main purpose people would use a smart speaker for, that being as an ease of access for various functions and operations including setting alarms, checking the weather, and setting reminders. Furthermore, these smart speakers allow for the user to ask it general questions to which it quickly generates a response usually the same as the response you would get when looking up the same question on google. On the surface, smart speakers appear to be a very useful and almost required technology in modern day households, however it does have its issues. The primary issue brought up around smart speakers, is the issue of privacy, for which there is countless articles and questions based around the same general topic. One of the issues with privacy is that supposedly the smart speakers only turn on when they hear their initiating words (for instance, “OK Google”), however questions have arisen from it hearing what you talk about when you are not talking to the speaker, this being known as a wiretap. This has been chiefly depicted through targeted advertisements that show up to linked accounts with the smart speaker. Additionally, more and more products are being released that are coupled with these speakers, including smart lighting, TV connectivity, doorbells, and even home security that all contribute to a “connected home”. Again, while this is all very convenient, it all requires an internet connection and to be powered on, so if there is maybe a blackout, or issues with the internet (as is very common in Australia), then the speaker is practically useless.

With privacy being one of the major concerns when it comes to these smart speakers, people are rightfully sceptical of them for the reasons stated above, but also as these speakers assemble a profile for their user which may be subject to cyberattacks, thus leaking the information to the general public. Another area of concern with these smart speakers is that it may generate security concerns as they can possibly allow people to access accounts and personal information through with out authentication. Overall, smart speakers are a generally useful and convenient as they allow for the user to have ease of access to a wide variety of functions from anywhere in the house using only their voice. It does have its concerns, but as of now, the benefits far out way the issues, and they will most likely become more secure in the future as they continue to progress with new technological advancements, and through tech companies responding to major criticisms and concerns associated with the privacy of these devices brought up by the general public.