Voice Assistant Privacy: Are They Always Listening?

Voice assistants differ in how they detect an activation and handle audio. The FTC describes wake-word patterns as one common design and warns that a device may mishear a sound, triggering an unintended recording. Product documentation matters: Google says Assistant in standby processes short audio snippets to detect an activation and does not send standby audio to its servers, though an unintended activation can cause a request to be sent. Amazon says Echo devices detect a chosen wake word through acoustic patterns and stream audio after detection, with a cloud verification step. These examples do not establish how every assistant works. After activation, a service may send the request to cloud servers, create a transcript, retain associated account data, or use selected clips for review or service improvement. Settings and retention options differ by product and can change. The FTC’s 2023 Amazon case concerned allegations about children’s Alexa recordings and deletion rights under COPPA; it is not a finding about all voice assistants. A physical microphone-mute switch, turning off voice activation, disabling optional review, and deleting stored history address different stages. Check each control’s product-specific description, whether it applies to future capture or existing transcripts, and whether linked services keep separate records. For sensitive conversations, use a physical mute or move the device away. Do not infer audio-storage behavior solely from a light or sound indicator.