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Is Google always listening: Live Test

Mitchollow
Demos
YouTube
1 HN user recommended this demo1 month2018–2024 score 1
Years with an HN recommendation, 2007–2026

Cited in threads about phones listening for ads as an anecdotal demonstration, though other commenters doubt it.

A creator runs an informal live test of whether Google or Facebook listen through the microphone to target ads, using Chrome on Windows 10. The description admits the methodology is flawed, including that live streaming itself records the microphone.

1 recommendations · 1 citations · 1 critical · Demos · partly dated

3 Hacker News comments

From the HN archive; up to 20 kept per video, favoring different commenters. Recommendations first.

@Alir3z4 Oct 2018 Recommends
on HN thread Ask HN: Is Google recording our conversations to serve us with relevant ads?
Here's a live test that may help you to believe [this video] and [link] In first video, a guy talks about dog toys and then he'll see ads related to what he talked about. Worth noting, he doesn't have dogs or searched about it. The ads are even specific to the toy colors he talked about.
Live test showing ads matching topics spoken aloud.

Citations, criticism and jokes

@Nadya Sep 2018 Cites it
on HN thread Ask HN: Is there any way an app can listen conversations secretly and show ads?
See: [this video] I tested this with my mother, telling her about this in person and talking about dog toys. My mother does not have a dog - but by the end of our 2 hour talk about how much she wanted to get her dog a dog toy she was getting advertisements for dog toys and dog food on Facebook. She has an iPhone.
Live test of whether phones listen to conversations for ads.

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