Amazon�s Alexa told a child to touch a penny to the exposed
prongs of a phone charger plugged into the wall, according to
one parent who posted screenshots of their Alexa activity
history showing the interaction (via Bleeping Computer). The
device seemingly pulled the idea for the challenge from an
article describing it as dangerous, citing news reports about an
alleged challenge trending on TikTok.

According to Kristin Livdahl�s screenshot, the Echo responded to
�tell me a challenge to do� with �Here�s something I found on
the web. According to ourcommunitynow.com: The challenge is
simple: plug in a phone charger about halfway into a wall
outlet, then touch a penny to the exposed prongs.� In a
statement to the BBC, Amazon said: �As soon as we became aware
of this error, we took swift action to fix it.� Livdahl tweeted
yesterday that asking for a challenge was no longer working.

<https://twitter.com/klivdahl/status/1475220450598924297?ref_src
=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E147522045059892429
7%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theverge.com
%2F2021%2F12%2F28%2F22856832%2Famazon-alexa-challenge-child-
dangerous-electricity-algorithm>

Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:

>Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'

As if the kernel has anything to do with that.

--
Joel Crump

On 2021-12-28, Joel <joelcrump@gmail.com> wrote:
> Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:
>
>>Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'
>
>
> As if the kernel has anything to do with that.
>

The guy is an idiot.
FWIW I wouldn't have one of those things in my house.
Too much risk of spying.
Same for the super smart TV that are 2 way.
Maybe I'm old fashioned?

--
pothead
Tommy Chong For President 2024
because crazy Joe Biden is demented.

pothead <pothead@snakebite.com> wrote:
>On 2021-12-28, Joel <joelcrump@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:
>>
>>>Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'
>>
>> As if the kernel has anything to do with that.
>
>The guy is an idiot.
>FWIW I wouldn't have one of those things in my house.
>Too much risk of spying.
>Same for the super smart TV that are 2 way.
>Maybe I'm old fashioned?

I have an Amazon Fire TV stick, it's invaluable. But the Alexa things
are weird to me.

--
Joel Crump

On 12/28/2021 6:18 PM, Nomen Nescio wrote:
> Amazon’s Alexa told a child to touch a penny to the exposed
> prongs of a phone charger plugged into the wall, according to
> one parent who posted screenshots of their Alexa activity
> history showing the interaction (via Bleeping Computer). The
> device seemingly pulled the idea for the challenge from an
> article describing it as dangerous, citing news reports about an
> alleged challenge trending on TikTok.
>
> According to Kristin Livdahl’s screenshot, the Echo responded to
> “tell me a challenge to do” with “Here’s something I found on
> the web. According to ourcommunitynow.com: The challenge is
> simple: plug in a phone charger about halfway into a wall
> outlet, then touch a penny to the exposed prongs.” In a
> statement to the BBC, Amazon said: “As soon as we became aware
> of this error, we took swift action to fix it.” Livdahl tweeted
> yesterday that asking for a challenge was no longer working.
>
> <https://twitter.com/klivdahl/status/1475220450598924297?ref_src
> =twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E147522045059892429
> 7%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theverge.com
> %2F2021%2F12%2F28%2F22856832%2Famazon-alexa-challenge-child-
> dangerous-electricity-algorithm>

How old was this child?
Why did the child specifically ask alexa "tell me a challange to do"
Was a penny too much to ask?

--
M15r6
i7-11800H
16GB RAM
RTX 3060
240 Hz Display

On 12/28/2021 4:29 PM, pothead wrote:
> On 2021-12-28, Joel <joelcrump@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:
>>
>>>Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'
>>
>>
>> As if the kernel has anything to do with that.
>>
>
> The guy is an idiot.
> FWIW I wouldn't have one of those things in my house.
> Too much risk of spying.
> Same for the super smart TV that are 2 way.
> Maybe I'm old fashioned?

Things? Do you mean an Alexa Device? Are you aware that Alexa can run on
a Windows computer?

On 2021-12-28, Ken Blake <Ken@invalidinvalid.com> wrote:
> On 12/28/2021 4:29 PM, pothead wrote:
>> On 2021-12-28, Joel <joelcrump@gmail.com> wrote:
>>> Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>>Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'
>>>
>>>
>>> As if the kernel has anything to do with that.
>>>
>>
>> The guy is an idiot.
>> FWIW I wouldn't have one of those things in my house.
>> Too much risk of spying.
>> Same for the super smart TV that are 2 way.
>> Maybe I'm old fashioned?
>
>
> Things? Do you mean an Alexa Device? Are you aware that Alexa can run on
> a Windows computer?

Of course I know that.
I'm talking of the device, not the OS it runs on.

--
pothead
Tommy Chong For President 2024
because crazy Joe Biden is demented.

In article <sqg6us$a3j$1@dont-email.me>
Dick_Holder <dick_holder@man.invalid> wrote:
>
> On 12/28/2021 6:18 PM, Nomen Nescio wrote:
> > Amazon’s Alexa told a child to touch a penny to the exposed
> > prongs of a phone charger plugged into the wall, according to
> > one parent who posted screenshots of their Alexa activity
> > history showing the interaction (via Bleeping Computer). The
> > device seemingly pulled the idea for the challenge from an
> > article describing it as dangerous, citing news reports about an
> > alleged challenge trending on TikTok.
> >
> > According to Kristin Livdahl’s screenshot, the Echo responded to
> > “tell me a challenge to do” with “Here’s something I found on
> > the web. According to ourcommunitynow.com: The challenge is
> > simple: plug in a phone charger about halfway into a wall
> > outlet, then touch a penny to the exposed prongs.” In a
> > statement to the BBC, Amazon said: “As soon as we became aware
> > of this error, we took swift action to fix it.” Livdahl tweeted
> > yesterday that asking for a challenge was no longer working.
> >
> > <https://twitter.com/klivdahl/status/1475220450598924297?ref_src
> > =twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E147522045059892429
> > 7%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theverge.com
> > %2F2021%2F12%2F28%2F22856832%2Famazon-alexa-challenge-child-
> > dangerous-electricity-algorithm>
>
> How old was this child?
> Why did the child specifically ask alexa "tell me a challange to do"
> Was a penny too much to ask?

Tweet
Kristin Livdahl
@klivdahl
OMFG My 10 year old just asked Alexa on our Echo for a challenge
and this is what she said.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FHkJLjPWUAMjRsJ?format=jpg&name=small

In article <sqg7vb$qo3$1@dont-email.me>
pothead <pothead@snakebite.com> wrote:
>
> On 2021-12-28, Ken Blake <Ken@invalidinvalid.com> wrote:
> > On 12/28/2021 4:29 PM, pothead wrote:
> >> On 2021-12-28, Joel <joelcrump@gmail.com> wrote:
> >>> Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:
> >>>
> >>>>Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> As if the kernel has anything to do with that.
> >>>
> >>
> >> The guy is an idiot.
> >> FWIW I wouldn't have one of those things in my house.
> >> Too much risk of spying.
> >> Same for the super smart TV that are 2 way.
> >> Maybe I'm old fashioned?
> >
> >
> > Things? Do you mean an Alexa Device? Are you aware that Alexa can run on
> > a Windows computer?
>
> Of course I know that.
> I'm talking of the device, not the OS it runs on.

I can't believe people have those in their homes and believe
they do anything useful. As soon as anybody new shows up the
stupid thing starts responding to them, and oddly enough somehow
- correctly identifies people who have never been in the house
before.

That means Amazon is sharing and analyzing the conversations it
captures.

On 12/28/2021 8:04 PM, Nomen Nescio wrote:
> In article <sqg6us$a3j$1@dont-email.me>
> Dick_Holder <dick_holder@man.invalid> wrote:
>>
>> On 12/28/2021 6:18 PM, Nomen Nescio wrote:
>>> Amazon’s Alexa told a child to touch a penny to the exposed
>>> prongs of a phone charger plugged into the wall, according to
>>> one parent who posted screenshots of their Alexa activity
>>> history showing the interaction (via Bleeping Computer). The
>>> device seemingly pulled the idea for the challenge from an
>>> article describing it as dangerous, citing news reports about an
>>> alleged challenge trending on TikTok.
>>>
>>> According to Kristin Livdahl’s screenshot, the Echo responded to
>>> “tell me a challenge to do” with “Here’s something I found on
>>> the web. According to ourcommunitynow.com: The challenge is
>>> simple: plug in a phone charger about halfway into a wall
>>> outlet, then touch a penny to the exposed prongs.” In a
>>> statement to the BBC, Amazon said: “As soon as we became aware
>>> of this error, we took swift action to fix it.” Livdahl tweeted
>>> yesterday that asking for a challenge was no longer working.
>>>
>>> <https://twitter.com/klivdahl/status/1475220450598924297?ref_src
>>> =twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E147522045059892429
>>> 7%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theverge.com
>>> %2F2021%2F12%2F28%2F22856832%2Famazon-alexa-challenge-child-
>>> dangerous-electricity-algorithm>
>>
>> How old was this child?
>> Why did the child specifically ask alexa "tell me a challange to do"
>> Was a penny too much to ask?
>
> Tweet
> Kristin Livdahl
> @klivdahl
> OMFG My 10 year old just asked Alexa on our Echo for a challenge
> and this is what she said.
>
> https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FHkJLjPWUAMjRsJ?format=jpg&name=small
>

LOL.
Fake gag to get you to go to mycommunity dot nonsense.
No 10 year old is saying "Alexa, tell me a challenge to do".

Suckers.

--
M15r6
i7-11800H
16GB RAM
RTX 3060
240 Hz Display

In article <0i7nsg5a1v1h42h21h56la0nddc1nsf6ql@4ax.com>
Joel <joelcrump@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> pothead <pothead@snakebite.com> wrote:
> >On 2021-12-28, Joel <joelcrump@gmail.com> wrote:
> >> Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:
> >>
> >>>Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'
> >>
> >> As if the kernel has anything to do with that.
> >
> >The guy is an idiot.
> >FWIW I wouldn't have one of those things in my house.
> >Too much risk of spying.
> >Same for the super smart TV that are 2 way.
> >Maybe I'm old fashioned?
>
>
> I have an Amazon Fire TV stick, it's invaluable. But the Alexa things
> are weird to me.
>
> --
> Joel Crump

Can't stand them or Cortana. They are nothing but profiling
tools to circumvent privacy laws.

Joel wrote:

> Nomen Nescio wrote:
>>
>> Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'
>
> As if the kernel has anything to do with that.

The stupidity of anti-Linux trolls is mind-boggling.

We once had a guy in here, the trolling fsckwit "Ezekiel", who blamed
Linux because a construction company that Samsung hired to build a
factory was accused of some abusive labor practices.

Samsung uses Linux (and Windows) on some of their products, you see.

I couldn't make this stuff up.

--
'It's easy to hide behind some pedantic argument that "Linux is just a
kernel" or Linux is only an OS and doesn't manufacture anything.' -
trolling fsckwit "Ezekiel", attacking Free software over the labor
practices of a company that happens to use it

chrisv <chrisv@nospam.invalid> wrote:
>Joel wrote:
>> Nomen Nescio wrote:
>>>
>>> Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'
>>
>> As if the kernel has anything to do with that.
>
>The stupidity of anti-Linux trolls is mind-boggling.
>
>We once had a guy in here, the trolling fsckwit "Ezekiel", who blamed
>Linux because a construction company that Samsung hired to build a
>factory was accused of some abusive labor practices.
>
>Samsung uses Linux (and Windows) on some of their products, you see.
>
>I couldn't make this stuff up.

Heh, crazy. I guess some people are that desperate to troll.

--
Joel Crump

On 12/28/21 19:26, Anonymous Remailer (austria) wrote:

[snip]

> I can't believe people have those in their homes and believe
> they do anything useful. As soon as anybody new shows up the
> stupid thing starts responding to them, and oddly enough somehow
> - correctly identifies people who have never been in the house
> before.
>
> That means Amazon is sharing and analyzing the conversations it
> captures.

That invasion of privacy is one of the major reasons I don't have any of
those "voice assistants".

One other thing I considered:
Some people would have one of those by the bed and use it to ask for the
lights when getting up to use the bathroom. I have a button (X10
controller) I can reach while in bed. Then I use the bathroom, get back
in bed, press the button again, and get back to sleep quickly. If I had
to VERBALIZE during that time it would take much longer to get back to
sleep.

--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Is it okay to yell 'MOVIE' in a crowded firehouse?"

On 12/28/21 19:34, Anonymous wrote:

[snip]

> Can't stand them or Cortana. They are nothing but profiling
> tools to circumvent privacy laws.

Yes, with everything you say going through their server. I don't trust
big corporations that much*. Same problem with internet-connected
security cameras.

* and "privacy policies" mean almost nothing when they have the data and
can change the rules at any time.

--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Is it okay to yell 'MOVIE' in a crowded firehouse?"

On 12/29/2021 11:48 AM, Mark Lloyd wrote:
> On 12/28/21 19:26, Anonymous Remailer (austria) wrote:
>
> [snip]
>
>> I can't believe people have those in their homes and believe
>> they do anything useful. As soon as anybody new shows up the
>> stupid thing starts responding to them, and oddly enough somehow
>> - correctly identifies people who have never been in the house
>> before.
>>
>> That means Amazon is sharing and analyzing the conversations it
>> captures.
>
> That invasion of privacy is one of the major reasons I don't have any of
> those "voice assistants".
>
> One other thing I considered:
> Some people would have one of those by the bed and use it to ask for the
> lights when getting up to use the bathroom. I have a button (X10
> controller) I can reach while in bed. Then I use the bathroom, get back
> in bed, press the button again, and get back to sleep quickly. If I had
> to VERBALIZE during that time it would take much longer to get back to
> sleep.
>

Fortunately I can find my ass with both hands in the dark and know the
way to the bathroom. The only wild card is if the cat decided to sprawl
someplace along my path. Listening to a pissed off cat VERBALIZE tends
to wake you up.

Mark Lloyd wrote:

>That invasion of privacy is one of the major reasons I don't have any of
>those "voice assistants".

I have no desire for such silly gadgets, even if they didn't invade my
privacy.

>One other thing I considered:
>Some people would have one of those by the bed and use it to ask for the
>lights when getting up to use the bathroom. I have a button (X10
>controller) I can reach while in bed. Then I use the bathroom, get back
>in bed, press the button again, and get back to sleep quickly. If I had
>to VERBALIZE during that time it would take much longer to get back to
>sleep.

It's best not to turn on any lights, if you want to get back to sleep.

--
'However, [chrisv was] fine to swallow the "Russian collusion"
narrative' - "Slimer", lying shamelessly

On 12/29/2021 11:56 AM, Mark Lloyd wrote:
> On 12/28/21 19:34, Anonymous wrote:
>
> [snip]
>
>> Can't stand them or Cortana. They are nothing but profiling
>> tools to circumvent privacy laws.
>
> Yes, with everything you say going through their server. I don't trust
> big corporations that much*. Same problem with internet-connected
> security cameras.
>
> * and "privacy policies" mean almost nothing when they have the data and
> can change the rules at any time.
>

Speech recognition on a phone is the same thing as well as some other
apps that bounce complex processing to a server.

https://www.javatpoint.com/android-qr-code-or-bar-code-scanner

Even QR or bar code scanners may be reaching out to a cloud based server
someplace.

Assume that Big Brother is potentially looking over your shoulder.

On 2021-12-28, Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:
> Amazon’s Alexa told a child to touch a penny to the exposed
> prongs of a phone charger plugged into the wall, according to
> one parent who posted screenshots of their Alexa activity
> history showing the interaction (via Bleeping Computer). The
> device seemingly pulled the idea for the challenge from an
> article describing it as dangerous, citing news reports about an
> alleged challenge trending on TikTok.
>
> According to Kristin Livdahl’s screenshot, the Echo responded to
> “tell me a challenge to do” with “Here’s something I found on
> the web. According to ourcommunitynow.com: The challenge is
> simple: plug in a phone charger about halfway into a wall
> outlet, then touch a penny to the exposed prongs.” In a
> statement to the BBC, Amazon said: “As soon as we became aware
> of this error, we took swift action to fix it.” Livdahl tweeted
> yesterday that asking for a challenge was no longer working.
>
><https://twitter.com/klivdahl/status/1475220450598924297?ref_src
>=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E147522045059892429
> 7%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theverge.com
> %2F2021%2F12%2F28%2F22856832%2Famazon-alexa-challenge-child-
> dangerous-electricity-algorithm>
>

I wish I could experience the attraction some people have for letting Big
Tech into their home in such an intrusive way.

--

"Many have sought in vain to tell joyously of the Most Joyous. Now at last It
declares Itself to me, now in this misery." - Holderlin

On 12/29/2021 08:26 PM, Rockinghorse Winner wrote:
> On 2021-12-28, Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:
>> Amazon’s Alexa told a child to touch a penny to the exposed
>> prongs of a phone charger plugged into the wall, according to
>> one parent who posted screenshots of their Alexa activity
>> history showing the interaction (via Bleeping Computer). The
>> device seemingly pulled the idea for the challenge from an
>> article describing it as dangerous, citing news reports about an
>> alleged challenge trending on TikTok.
>>
>> According to Kristin Livdahl’s screenshot, the Echo responded to
>> “tell me a challenge to do” with “Here’s something I found on
>> the web. According to ourcommunitynow.com: The challenge is
>> simple: plug in a phone charger about halfway into a wall
>> outlet, then touch a penny to the exposed prongs.” In a
>> statement to the BBC, Amazon said: “As soon as we became aware
>> of this error, we took swift action to fix it.” Livdahl tweeted
>> yesterday that asking for a challenge was no longer working.
>>
>> <https://twitter.com/klivdahl/status/1475220450598924297?ref_src
>> =twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E147522045059892429
>> 7%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theverge.com
>> %2F2021%2F12%2F28%2F22856832%2Famazon-alexa-challenge-child-
>> dangerous-electricity-algorithm>
>>
>
> I wish I could experience the attraction some people have for letting Big
> Tech into their home in such an intrusive way.
>

It's so convenient...

On 12/29/21 15:35, chrisv wrote:
> Mark Lloyd wrote:
>
>> That invasion of privacy is one of the major reasons I don't have any of
>> those "voice assistants".
>
> I have no desire for such silly gadgets, even if they didn't invade my
> privacy.
>
>> One other thing I considered:
>> Some people would have one of those by the bed and use it to ask for the
>> lights when getting up to use the bathroom. I have a button (X10
>> controller) I can reach while in bed. Then I use the bathroom, get back
>> in bed, press the button again, and get back to sleep quickly. If I had
>> to VERBALIZE during that time it would take much longer to get back to
>> sleep.
>
> It's best not to turn on any lights, if you want to get back to sleep.

Yes. However (at least it does for me) a light has much less of an
effect than verbalizing.

--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"The weirdest way to fantasize While frigid Solstice thaws Imagine-
Christless Christmastime! replaced by... "Jesus Claus"? [Gerald Tholen]

On 12/29/21 15:31, rbowman wrote:

[snip]

> Fortunately I can find my ass with both hands in the dark and know the
> way to the bathroom. The only wild card is if the cat decided to sprawl
> someplace along my path. Listening to a pissed off cat VERBALIZE tends
> to wake you up.

I have stepped on a cat before, and that can could scream VERY loudly.
One reason for using a light, I just really don't want to have to use
words to do it and I don't.

--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"The weirdest way to fantasize While frigid Solstice thaws Imagine-
Christless Christmastime! replaced by... "Jesus Claus"? [Gerald Tholen]

Op 29-12-2021 om 0:29 schreef pothead:
> On 2021-12-28, Joel <joelcrump@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Nomen Nescio <nobody@dizum.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Subject: Alexa - Linux - told a child to do potentially lethal 'challenge'
>>
>>
>> As if the kernel has anything to do with that.
>>
>
> The guy is an idiot.
> FWIW I wouldn't have one of those things in my house.
> Too much risk of spying.
> Same for the super smart TV that are 2 way.
> Maybe I'm old fashioned?
>

There is no "risk" of spying.
They do spy.

That's why I agree with you: no Alexa etc. in my house.
Has nothing to do with old-fashioned.
People are stupid, when they say "I have nothing to hide".

Rink