Google AI to Read All of Your Private Messages

Maybe the public has a say in the matter.

Photo by Joan Gamell on Unsplash

Google has just unveiled a game-changing AI upgrade for Android. It’s called “Bard”. But it has a darker side. Google’s AI will start to read and analyse your private messages, going back forever. So what does this mean for you? “How do you maintain your privacy, and when does it begin?” Forbes asked.

And so do we.

Intrusion into our private lives is nothing new on the internet or via huge corporations that are always trying to sell you something. But to what extent are we going to allow that to happen, and more importantly, when do we say enough is enough?

Forbes examines this paradox further: “There’s understandable excitement that Google is bringing Bard to Messages. A ready-made ChatGPT-like UI for a ready-made user base of hundreds of millions. “It’s an AI assistant,” says Bard, “that can improve your messaging experience. From facilitating communication to enhancing creativity and providing information, it will be your personal AI assistant within your messaging app.”

Really? Why is it that I don’t think people would want this in the long run? Isn’t PM a way to communicate privately with our chosen recipients? And this machine is going to tell us what to say so we don’t even have to think?!?

Whatever happened to speaking one on one? Or say what you mean — poor grammar and all? Why should we need a bot to make us a bot-like acting human?

Let’s continue…

Bard will also analyse the private content of messages “to understand the context of your conversations, your tone, and your interests.” It will analyse the sentiment of your messages, “to tailor its responses to your mood and vibe.” It will “analyse your message history with different contacts to understand your relationship dynamics… to personalise responses based on who you’re talking to.”

EXCUSE ME?!? Who asked them? That is my question. As I said in the paragraph above, this is nothing but a way to dehumanise us. A way to turn us into automats, copy-and-paste humans, and now, doing the writing that we should be doing.

If I didn’t know they’re dead serious, I’d call this a big poor joke.

We have gotten to the point where, if we don’t act and regulate this beast now, by the time we wake up and smell the coffee, it’ll be too frigid to drink.

We can’t face a fight daily against these people. It’s absurd to have to do so, especially if we have better things to do with our lives. And I can think of a million.

But I digress…

So here comes the next privacy battlefield for smartphone owners still coming to terms with app permissions, privacy labels, and tracking transparency, and with all those voice AI assistant eavesdropping scandals still fresh in the memory. Google’s challenge will be convincing users that this doesn’t open the door to the same kind of privacy nightmares we’ve seen before, where user content and AI platforms meet.

There will be another, less contentious privacy issue with your Messages requests to Bard. These will be sent to the cloud for processing, used for training, and may be seen by humans — albeit anonymized. This data will be stored for 18 months and will persist for a few days even if you disable the AI, although manual deletion is available.

In other words, they’ll try to make it impossible for you to retain your God-given attribute and privilege of belonging to the human race. Not without allowing AI in every aspect of your life, including your private messages.

So, what’s next? Google spooks in your bedroom? Bard executives under the bed?

Shall we check the entire house and garage for bugs?

I don’t know about you, but doesn’t this sound like a bit of an overreach on their part?

Let me know in the comments section.

Photo by KeepCoding on Unsplash

re: Forbes article.

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