Dystopian Surveillance is Becoming a Reality

Apple recently announced an upcoming feature for their new Apple Watches called “Audio Intelligence,” which will always be listening to and transcribing conversations in the background and summarizing them at the end of the day. While Apple have implemented some protections and safeguards to protect the privacy of the watch owner, anyone who talks to someone who has an Apple Watch with “Audio Intelligence” enabled could potentially be recorded without their knowledge or consent. I can see how such a feature could be genuinely useful. Keeping a personal journal, keeping track of what was discussed in business meetings, etc. But I think the privacy implications are serious. I don’t like the idea that anything I say in a public setting or in a conversation with others could end up in a transcript summary on someone’s personal device. But this is just the latest in a long line of concerns about surveillance as the devices we use become more and more technologically advanced. In truth,…