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TV News Broadcast Accidentally Activates Alexa, Initiates Orders (cw6sandiego.com)

Posted by EditorDavid on from the always-listening dept.

ShaunC writes: In San Diego, TV news anchor Jim Patton was covering a separate story about a child who accidentally ordered a doll house using her family's Echo. Commenting on the story, Patton said "I love the little girl, saying 'Alexa ordered me a dollhouse.'" Viewers across San Diego reported that in response to the news anchor's spoken words, their own Echo devices activated and tried to order doll houses from Amazon. Amazon says that anyone whose Echo inadvertently ordered a physical item can return it at no charge.
Meanwhile, Engadget reports that a team of Twitch streamers has convinced one Google Home device to answer questions from another, and they're livestreaming the surreal conversation.

12 of 254 comments (clear)

  1. Dilbert predicted this by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Much as I think Scott Adams has turned batsh!t crazy recently, he did predict this way back in 1994

    http://dilbert.com/strip/1994-04-24

    1. Re:Dilbert predicted this by meerling · · Score: 5, Funny

      In the early 80s at the PC group meeting, a rep came in to show off their voice command software.
      He set it up, and then from the crowd, someone said "Format C: Enter", followed by another voice "Yes".
      Sure enough, it formatted the entire drive, and the rep had a much shorter presentation than he was expecting, but even he had to admit, the demonstration, though short, was very effective.

    2. Re: Dilbert predicted this by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Hi Scott.

    3. Re:Dilbert predicted this by 93+Escort+Wagon · · Score: 4, Informative

      Dilbert has made him rich - so the correct term is "batshit eccentric".

      --
      #DeleteChrome
    4. Re:Dilbert predicted this by Darinbob · · Score: 4, Informative

      Problem is too many people just believe the made up stuff from Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, and the like, and will believe the most bizarre rumors about Obama. As in that he's actively working to remove borders between the US, Canada, and Mexico, or that there was literally zero immigration between the 30s and the 50s. They don't have the evidence to back this up but they do believe whatever these people say on the air. So it's no wonder that people think Obama was raised by communists, is a muslim, was born in Kenya, etc, because American no longer bother to use their brains, it is a vestigial organ. Obama has deported more people than any other president and yet so many are firmly convinced that he's trying to get illegal immigration to increase. What's even more bizarre is that someone who's solidly right wing conservative can deny these conspiracy theories and then get shouted down for being a liberal who's trying to steal their guns, they're stuck to a viewpoint that you must be 100% in agreement with them or else you are an enemy. And they'll defend all this by saying "all mass media lies" which is their way of saying that all evidence must be ignored and rely only on your gut instincts. I've never seen America so weird before, and I lived in the 60s.

  2. Re:Well that's a hell of a security hole. by sumdumass · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's more like the little girl told the echo what it wanted for Christmas or something and the news caster paraphrased.

    In case he wasn't though, Amazon's own voice ordering fact page says that when you attempt to order something it searches

    Your order history - only Prime-eligible items.
    Amazon's Choice - Amazon's Choice items are highly rated, well-priced products that are available to order immediately.
    Prime-eligible items - including delivery by Prime Now for eligible items.

    in an attempt to find/idntify what you ordered. If a dollhouse was on the Amazon's Choice list, it would have been ordered under this policy.

  3. Well bugger me! by quenda · · Score: 5, Funny

    Well bugger me! ... No! No! Cancel! ...

    Alexa 7.0 robotic assistant will need a safe word.

  4. puzzled by buss_error · · Score: 4, Insightful

    What gives me pause - is it really such an inconvenience to open a browser and, like, click a single button? I'm no technophobe, but I am against the misapplication of technology. I guess Alexia and Siri and the like are OK if one is a paraplegic or otherwise unable to use their hands.

    Other than my grand nieces shouting cute things at Siri to see what happens... it simply strikes me as flash and little substance.

    --
    Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.
  5. Re:Well that's a hell of a security hole. by quenda · · Score: 4, Funny

    Safe bet that Amazon will be rushing some sort of patch on that ASAP

    Patch!? Hell no, they've rushed out a patent - the no-click patent. Everyone else will be prevented from doing this, which is some consolation.

  6. Re:What a coincidence by hackwrench · · Score: 5, Funny

    I was in a mental ward quite some time ago, (yes as a patient. I wanted to insist that I had a contract with Microsoft that did not exist and other bizarre things. I did not actually believe I had a contract with Microsoft, that would be crazy) where one of the other patients said "I am Napoleon." and the doc said, "How do you know you're Napoleon?" and the patient replied, "God told me." and another patient piped up, "I did not!"

  7. Re:Well that's a hell of a security hole. by Darinbob · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Consumers love this stuff though, they cannot see anything wrong with the one-button-buy-without-approval until something like this happens. Seriously how lazy do fat Americans have to be that they need voice activated Amazon purchases because it takes too much energy to use the computer?

  8. FALSE NEWS by cdwiegand · · Score: 5, Informative

    Anyone with an Alexa knows when you start an order it lists matching products and asks for verification.

    --
    . Define sqrt(x) as something really evil like (x / rand()), and bury it deep. Watch your coworkers go nuts.