Apple uses contractors to review Siri recordings, including those made on accident
The Siri voice assistant. (KÄrlis DambrÄns/Flickr)
In July, 2019, an Apple contractor told The Guardian that they'd heard Siri recordings they shouldn't -- audio of private conversations in doctor's offices, of couples having sex, and apparent criminal activity.
"And youād hear, like, people engaging in sexual acts that are accidentally recorded on the pod or the watch," said the contractor, who didn't give their name.
Siri users are able to activate Siri by saying her name. Occasionally, Siri will activate on accident. Those accidental recordings were reviewed by contractors and employees to improve Siri's reponses. Apple told The Guardian that they also review a small number of intentional Siri recordings for quality control:
A small portion of Siri requests are analysed to improve Siri and dictation. User requests are not associated with the userās Apple ID. Siri responses are analysed in secure facilities and all reviewers are under the obligation to adhere to Appleās strict confidentiality requirements.