Punch-drunk Apple Watch called 15 cops to a boxing workout when it heard 'shots'
- Reference: 1674134109
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2023/01/19/apple_watch_called_police/
- Source link:
Sydney man Jamie Alleyne was running a boxing class, with a client punching away at pads on his hands. As the client pounded the pads, sufficient force was imparted to activate Apple's Siri voice assistant due to the pressure of his wrist against his watch.
Alleyne said he took off his watch because Siri kept interrupting and could not make sense of instructions he issued to his client to punch in certain combinations, like "1-1-2" – an emergency telephone number.
[1]
Those instructions included remarks about the quality of the client's "shots" – boxing parlance for punches.
[2]
Unbeknownst to Alleyne, Siri had jumped to conclusions and soon police and ambulances were swarming the gym where he plies his trade.
[3]Voice assistants failed because they serve their makers more than they help users
[4]Apple broke the law fighting Atlanta union, says NLRB
[5]Siri: Who's first to offer voice search on Chinese TikTok?
[6]Terror of the adtech industry iOS 14.5 has landed, and Siri can answer your calls ... though she/he can't hang up
Alleyne posted images of the boys in blue to his [7]Instagram . He later [8]told Murdoch organ news.com.au he has since disabled Siri on his Apple Watch.
He also remarked that he was impressed by the speed with which police appeared, even though it was an odd variety of swatting – a hacker prank that sees police needlessly summoned to attend fake emergencies.
Which leaves us with a question: Hey Siri, do you know if those officers and ambulances were needed elsewhere at the time? ®
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[1] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Y8l3RKQC0yvVZY61gjS0XAAAAE4&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Y8l3RKQC0yvVZY61gjS0XAAAAE4&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[3] https://www.theregister.com/2022/12/14/voice_assistants_failed/
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2022/12/06/apple_atlanta_labor_nlrb/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2022/02/09/siri_douyin/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2021/04/27/ios_update/
[7] https://www.instagram.com/p/CngSam6pGLD/?hl=en
[8] https://www.news.com.au/technology/ptj-muay-thai-trainers-shock-as-15-cops-turn-up-after-apple-watch-calls-police/news-story/d6d4ed8cdc372335246815c878b7782c
[9] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Hey, Siri
I regret that I only have one upvote to give!
I could not have said it better! I do exactly the same things!
I have a friend who is constantly asking* Siri this and that... not for me brother!
Too lazy to type!
Re: Hey, Siri
Remind your lazy friend that every time he asks Siri to do something for him the corporations behind the request(s) add that activity to his personal life history profile.
Thanks to his insistence on using Siri, plus his credit card and location / Google Maps histories, they know about as much as he does about his everyday life. They know where he usually is, and when, plus what he will probably do once he is there (make purchases, get things done that Siri had previously assisted with, etc etc).
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If that doesn't give pause for thought from the fool, I don't know what will.
This is the problem with using sensors to try to work out if one is in peril or not, they lack context for what the owner is currently doing. Also you know that apple doesn't have three of each sensor (which, yes, is partially down to the space constraints), so the software will always trust the sensor is giving a correct reading.
It's really about getting people accustomed to be around all sorts of listening devices "for their own good".
Imagine that decades ago people were paranoid that government is listening to what they say. Now they will be worried if government is not.
re: problem with using sensors to try to work out if one is in peril or not
We used to have lone worker alarms which trigger if you lie immobile for long enough
But we also had meetings with PowerPoint
The bill
I assume that the bill for this whole fiasco has been dispatched to Apple?
Re: The bill
There will be some sort of term or condition where by Apple explicitly say that any activity that causes a sensor to go off, and you're not in danger, as a prohibited activity and ergo take a long walk off a short pier.
Re: The bill
Yes, that are conditions for the person who bought the device.
However, the police and emergency services are not bound by that contract. They can simply argue that Apple is the responsible party for causing a stir and send them a bill. It was not the user who alarmed the authorities, but it was Apple who did so.
Re: The bill
But then Apple will be like "But sir, we're not the ones actually setting the device off. You wouldn't take Ford to court for a drunk driver, would you?".
Re: The bill
No, but you could take them to court when the car calls the emergency services for no good reason. It is simply a "defective product". If not the owner, then the police/emergency services will have a serious problem with the manufacturer and will take the appropriate steps.
Brave New World
In not so distant future:
A watch called 15 cops to a boxing workout when it heard 'Government is stealing money'.
It will be common thing to say "oh Steve got watched last night" - as in "swatted".
Well, this proves that the thing works. Apple is probably happy with the news
Hey, Siri
Fuck right off. Do it now.
Note that Siri is disabled on every Apple device I have. Cortona was disabled on Microsoft devices. I don’t own any Amazon or Google voice assistant devices.
Die, Siri, die. And take all your little friends with you.