What is Digg?Warning: The Content in this Article May be Inaccurate
Readers have reported that this story contains information that may not be accurate.105 Comments
- zblackeagle, on 10/12/2007, -9/+56Yes. Let's steal quotes from slashdot
- DJcrayon, on 10/12/2007, -1/+36This is clearly advertising gone way to far
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -20/+53Girl: WalnutMon, your penis is too small for me...
Me: Shh... Be quiet!
Girl: Why? Does it make you feel self conscious?
Me: No, I don't give a *****, I just don't feel like having more penis enlargement advertisements sent to me via google's sound activated advertisement scheme
Girl: I SURE NEED SOME VIBRATORS!
Me: AND WIVES FROM RUSSIA! - Gaius, on 10/12/2007, -2/+28This is downright evil. It shouldn't see the light of day. It's one thing to target ads based on the site you're visiting, it's quite another to listen in on your life to target ads. Good thing I have my mic muted. Sheesh, if Google is contemplating something like this, then what else are they coming up with?!
- EmileVictor, on 10/12/2007, -0/+25I remember someone from google saying that the idea that this would be implemented was "ridiculous".
Plus, I am pretty sure that one of the only ways they could do this - flash - wouldn't be able to do it without consent.
In any case, there would be a huge outcry if it did happen. - tybris, on 10/12/2007, -1/+24I bet Orwell never thought of that...
- jwoelich, on 10/12/2007, -3/+24When are articles from the Register *ever* 100% accurate?
- stou, on 10/12/2007, -2/+22I don't know about a movie... but I've heard of a "book" called 1984... you know? a book? with like pages of text and stuff.
- samste, on 10/12/2007, -3/+21this is so bad. and they wont give like a message saying "can we access your mic?" ?
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+18Yeah. For all the bad stuff they did, Microsoft NEVER did anything this evil.
"Listen in using your computer's microphone???" That's like, the canonical evil of the information age. - fordhamwt, on 10/12/2007, -5/+20Hey, be nice. Three months is a long time when you're twelve ;).
- chris9902, on 10/12/2007, -2/+15Google suggest the prodcut: "STFU or we'll break your thumbs" for you.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+15This is now spying and its ridiculous. Who would agree to be spied on in order to get ads which they would never click?
If the Government isnt allowed to do it (wink), then would should Google be permitted?
BTW - How accurate is this information? - EricJD, on 10/12/2007, -1/+12Is that legal?
- graystar, on 10/12/2007, -2/+13Thats how it starts. Tiny, can't tell anything. What about v2? v3? v10? Bigger pipes might have live streaming by v12?
- Gaius, on 10/12/2007, -2/+12Link to the article in Technology Review: http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?id=17354&ch=infotech
From the article:
Their prototype software, detailed in a conference presentation in Europe last June, uses a computer's built-in microphone to listen to the sounds in a room. It then filters each five-second snippet of sound to pick out audio from a TV, reduces the snippet to a digital "fingerprint," searches an Internet server for a matching fingerprint from a pre-recorded show, and, if it finds a match, displays ads, chat rooms, or other information related to that snippet on the user's computer.
...
But the technology makes it impractical; at four bytes, the fingerprints don't contain enough information to reconstruct the original sounds in a room. "Some people did get the impression that we had an open microphone that was going to listen in on them," says Norvig. "Clearly, that was not what we were doing. We are transmitting a key that can be matched but not reversed. That said, users are giving up some information -- and that's something they have to decide about." - Caliente, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10is it the 1st of April already?
- PercyKittenz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8It's certainly possible to record directly from the microphone port on the sound card and upload the data to a web server via a Java applet. In fact, I just got done working on a web application that does exactly that (except that it only records when you want to record something, not as spyware that always runs). Some browsers, like Firefox, will ask if you want to run the applet the first time. IE should do that as well, and if it doesn't that's a big security problem. But with the garbage that people install just blindly clicking Allow to anything, it would be all to easy for a company as trusted as Google to have this run on any page that serves up Google Ads.
- livestradamus, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8Beano ads
- Petrarch1603, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9yeah and summertime was so long ago /sheesh
- Bokista, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9Good thing I don't even have a mic.
- franticzombie, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9@Waterdragon; the word "like", although pretty banal in the usage we're discussing here, isn't always misplaced. When he says "like", he could mean "similar to" or "something along the lines of"- and there's a pretty good case for that in this particular example.
Contrast this with something along the lines of "That's, like, totally cool!", which is just ******* pointless. - zblackeagle, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7"If this ever comes out I will eat my own shoes"
I loathe this application of technology. Stop giving me a reason to want it :P - surfit, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Advertising industry will always try to push the boundaries, can't blame them if there are poorly written software in place that allow it. It's highly unethical though.
Not sure what technology they plan to use (didn't notice it mentioned in the article), but whatever it is, it should at least be considered adware until this security problem is fixed. - Easty, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7How often are they gonna pick up '*fap fap fap fap fap fap fap* Ohhhh yeahh.... *fap fap fap fap fap*' compared to 'Hmm, I think I need to consolidate my debts into one existing payment!'
- amigiac, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6@tybris
The view-screens in 1984. Every room had one to listen and watch your every move.
Next week google ads targeted by webcam? - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7Absolute rubbish
They're going to isolate the sound of your television, run this absolutely terribly quality sound through a voice recognition thing, run that data against what, a big database containing the scripts to every show ever recorded? Then target ads based on that
Oh and it won't work with live TV.
none of this sounds remotely feasible, never mind practical
If this ever comes out I will eat my own shoes - mistshadow2k4, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6"I don't know about a movie... but I've heard of a "book" called 1984... you know? a book? with like pages of text and stuff."
Er, do you mean like a .pdf? Or maybe text files? Or a web page when you have images turned off?
(j/k) - wildleaf, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Has everyone forgotten about the PC applications that Google already has on many people's computers? IE's Toolbar, the Google Desktop, Picassa, Google Talk. All of these applications are on people's computers and they would not have to use Flash, or put up with Java warning you that they will be using the mic on your computer.
I trust that it will be an easy thing to turn off though. Or even default off. Google has given me no reason to mistrust them. I will keep an eye on this, as something as intrusive as this could change everything. - fuzzlepop, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Then sites that provide toolbars will be adding little extras to send a highpaying keyword fingerprint to google so they show high paying ads on their site.
- CptAJ, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5And I believe, my friends, this is the point where google peaks. From now on its pure inertia and the inevitable decline. It happens to all great tech companies, just like it did to microsoft and IBM. Which means its about time for the next big company to pop up so keep your investment money ready.
- Weakling, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5Don't you think that if Google are capable of listening in, they would also be able to "un-mute" your microphone? ... Easy.
I have always been a bit suspicious about Google acting like a info addict and this news item does not help. But I fear there is no real search engine alternative. Won't be long before I am carried off to room 101 ... - mkoranda, on 10/12/2007, -2/+51984 as a book?!? I didn't know Van Halen wrote a book!
- wildleaf, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Yes. the toolbar is for FF too, but you must remember HOW extensions for FF work and realize that they CANNOT do the same things in FF with toolbars as they can do in IE with toolbars (ActiveX controls vs Javascript).
- ArcticCelt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4It's all starting to make sense:
"War is peace"
"Freedom is slavery"
"Ignorance is strength"
"Don't be evil" - sophiaperennis, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3That reminds me of an interesting movie released this year: In Ascolto (The Listening), where they portray the NSA using phones to listen to conversations, regardless of someone talking on the phone: http://imdb.com/title/tt0427461/
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"Ergo,(...)"
Architect, is that you? :-O - neoknight, on 10/12/2007, -6/+9that's it google, i aint never clicking on your ads again. People should type in the URL of google ads rather than click on them.
Next, google will buy itself into the census of every country it has a url for and make search related questions mandatory to answer.
STOP! ALREADY! - JamesWilson, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3I imagine this will be implemented with flash, and flash does ask you before listening.
- paulgregory, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Wow. Next time I swear at MS Office, Google will prompt me to download OpenOffice.
Although 90% of the things it will hear are "Why is my computer going so sodding slow since I installed Google Ears?" - ionut, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2This is the original source:
http://googleresearch.blogspot.com/2006/06/interactive-tv-conference-and-best.html
(Google Research Blog) - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3RATT wrote one too, but they smoked it by accident.
- stockjones, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3But it cant be.. You mean Google, our hero against the evil Microsoft would do such things? It can't be. Nooo...
Welcome to reality folks.
And honestly, do you think all these web based tools like Google calendar, or Yahoo calendar whatever dont store the info somewhere? Its not on your hard drive. - birdwatcher3000, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3So if someone farted...
- Brahma, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Google..Why don't you start helping the secret agencies instead of meddling with the common people!!
- blankman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2It is illegal to record someone on private property. It's even illegal to tape their voice unknowingly in public.
- PaulRay, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Ignore Davzie. He hasn't had his Prozium dose today.
The Clerics will be by to correct the situation - PaulRay, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3To be fair. The Movie Is a Classic.
Although Aldous Huxley (A Brave New World) seems to have hit closer to the current reality that Orwell (1984) did.
He talked more about us becoming complacent and "Amusing ourselves to death".
Giving up rights and privacy through apathy and for convenience.
This Google thing may not be feasible now, but given time, it will be. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Doesnt this violate the "dont be evil" idea? i think so
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Yeah. Throw your mic through the window. ;-)
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