IBM has banned its employees from using Siri, the “personal assistant” feature on the latest iPhone, over fears it will send sensitive information straight to Apple headquarters.
Siri, a tool which allows you to operate the iPhone using just your voice, was introduced on the iPhone 4S last October. What many Apple users might not realise is that the handy application beams every single thing they say to it back to the company’s servers.
The process may seem sinister but it is clearly outlined in the phone’s licence agreement.
The agreement, which all users must sign, reads: “When you use Siri or Dictation, the things you say will be recorded and sent to Apple in order to convert what you say into text.”
The aim is to build a database which can convert instructions – such as “call dad” – into actions carried out by the phone.
The licence agreement reserves the right to deploy user data “to provide and improve Siri, Dictation and other Apple products and services”.
But Wired magazine says there is no restriction on what the data could be used for. – Daily Mail