Note: This post has been updated for clarity and now includes a statement from Facebook.
A concerning new leak reveals Big Tech's marketing partners discussing a shocking situation, including eavesdropping on users’ conversations.
The reason is simple. They’re using it to grasp users’ needs and wants and then target them specifically with ads related to that. But the question on our minds is if that’s even legal as we’re not aware of any such agreements.
The news comes to us thanks to 404 Media who put the matter into the spotlight. Based on documents rolled out to reporters, the leaks come from news and radio giant Cox Media Group. They’re heard bragging about a software dubbed Active Listening that makes use of AI to capture real-time data by listening to chats.
Advertisers are pairing the voice data with behavioral data to better approach the market.
We also hear about CMG adding some more bombshell names from the tech world that make use of similar practices. Common examples include Google, Facebook, as well as Amazon. These clients might be part of the Active Listening service.
When 404 reached out for more details and to confirm if the matter was even true, Google’s response was a shocker. It removed the media house from its list of partner programs. This further led to Meta admitting that it was in the process of carrying out a review to see if any violations were made to its Terms of Service.
In an email to DIW, Meta clarified: "Meta does not use your phone's microphone for ads and we've been public about this for years. We are reaching out to CMG to get them to clarify that their program is not based on Meta data”.
Moving on to Amazon, it blatantly denied the allegations and spoke about how CMG never worked with the company and would like to keep it that way for the near future. Still, if any marketing partners were found guilty of the act, they would be brought to justice for violations.
The latest revelations mark this as three time in a row that we’ve seen 404 media reports on the shady behavior of using voice service to target clients. In the past year, the independent news website put the marketing firm on blast for promoting creepy technology through a podcast. Knowing that this listening feature does exist is so sad.
Combined with the new update, the stories are giving rise to a lot of suspicions related to advertisers using phones to listen to users without consent. It’s like privacy has gone out of the window.
The question on people’s minds is whether or not this behavior is legal or not. The answer is that it’s legal for devices to listen to you because when you make downloads or updates for apps, it’s mentioned in fine print somewhere about this. You’ll see Active Listening as a part of this list.
CMG failed to acknowledge how it took on the voice data. It just identified those who were ready to purchase and hence made targeted lists for those individuals depending on what their interests were.
They are charging up to $100 each day and $200 if you’re a little further from reach like the 20-mile radius. The fact that CMG is not replying to many media outlets who are bombarding them with common questions like how is this possible and what techniques it uses to carry out active listening is questionable.
If you cannot reply, then don’t give hope to others that it’s still very possible. And if you are standing by your claims, please be strong enough to support them. Active listening is very creepy and really puts a big question mark on users’ safety and privacy in the world of advancing tech.
Image: DIW-Aigen
Read next: Apple’s Hypocrisy Unraveled: The Company Spends Millions To Lobby Against Child Safety Mandates
A concerning new leak reveals Big Tech's marketing partners discussing a shocking situation, including eavesdropping on users’ conversations.
The reason is simple. They’re using it to grasp users’ needs and wants and then target them specifically with ads related to that. But the question on our minds is if that’s even legal as we’re not aware of any such agreements.
The news comes to us thanks to 404 Media who put the matter into the spotlight. Based on documents rolled out to reporters, the leaks come from news and radio giant Cox Media Group. They’re heard bragging about a software dubbed Active Listening that makes use of AI to capture real-time data by listening to chats.
Advertisers are pairing the voice data with behavioral data to better approach the market.
We also hear about CMG adding some more bombshell names from the tech world that make use of similar practices. Common examples include Google, Facebook, as well as Amazon. These clients might be part of the Active Listening service.
When 404 reached out for more details and to confirm if the matter was even true, Google’s response was a shocker. It removed the media house from its list of partner programs. This further led to Meta admitting that it was in the process of carrying out a review to see if any violations were made to its Terms of Service.
In an email to DIW, Meta clarified: "Meta does not use your phone's microphone for ads and we've been public about this for years. We are reaching out to CMG to get them to clarify that their program is not based on Meta data”.
Moving on to Amazon, it blatantly denied the allegations and spoke about how CMG never worked with the company and would like to keep it that way for the near future. Still, if any marketing partners were found guilty of the act, they would be brought to justice for violations.
The latest revelations mark this as three time in a row that we’ve seen 404 media reports on the shady behavior of using voice service to target clients. In the past year, the independent news website put the marketing firm on blast for promoting creepy technology through a podcast. Knowing that this listening feature does exist is so sad.
Combined with the new update, the stories are giving rise to a lot of suspicions related to advertisers using phones to listen to users without consent. It’s like privacy has gone out of the window.
The question on people’s minds is whether or not this behavior is legal or not. The answer is that it’s legal for devices to listen to you because when you make downloads or updates for apps, it’s mentioned in fine print somewhere about this. You’ll see Active Listening as a part of this list.
CMG failed to acknowledge how it took on the voice data. It just identified those who were ready to purchase and hence made targeted lists for those individuals depending on what their interests were.
They are charging up to $100 each day and $200 if you’re a little further from reach like the 20-mile radius. The fact that CMG is not replying to many media outlets who are bombarding them with common questions like how is this possible and what techniques it uses to carry out active listening is questionable.
If you cannot reply, then don’t give hope to others that it’s still very possible. And if you are standing by your claims, please be strong enough to support them. Active listening is very creepy and really puts a big question mark on users’ safety and privacy in the world of advancing tech.
Read next: Apple’s Hypocrisy Unraveled: The Company Spends Millions To Lobby Against Child Safety Mandates
