In Alexa, We Trust. Or Do We? : An analysis of People's Perception of Privacy Policies

TL;DR

This paper investigates how aware users are of Amazon Alexa's privacy policies and examines behavioral changes after users learn about potential privacy risks, offering insights for researchers and designers.

Contribution

It provides an analysis of user awareness regarding Alexa's privacy policies and explores behavioral shifts post-awareness, which is a novel focus in smart device privacy research.

Findings

Users often lack awareness of privacy policies.

Awareness of privacy risks influences user interaction behavior.

The study suggests the need for better privacy communication.

Abstract

Smart home devices have found their way through people's homes as well as hearts. One such smart device is Amazon Alexa. Amazon Alexa is a voice-controlled application that is rapidly gaining popularity. Alexa was primarily used for checking weather forecasts, playing music, and controlling other devices. This paper tries to explore the extent to which people are aware of the privacy policies pertaining to the Amazon Alexa devices. We have evaluated behavioral change towards their interactions with the device post being aware of the adverse implications. Resulting knowledge will give researchers new avenues of research and interaction designers new insights into improving their systems.