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These are the eight things you should never say to Siri or Alexa
Home>Technology>News
Published 12:58 21 Jun 2024 GMT+1

These are the eight things you should never say to Siri or Alexa

Sometimes a job best done is when you do it yourself

Mia Williams

Mia Williams

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Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock /Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Topics: Technology, Apple, Amazon, Artificial Intelligence

Mia Williams
Mia Williams

Mia is an NCTJ-trained journalist at UNILAD with a BA (Hons) in Multimedia Journalism, reporting across breaking news, US politics, entertainment, health, lifestyle, and more. Before joining as a journalist in 2026, she freelanced across the LADbible Group titles for over three years. She is also a documentary producer, having created independent films, and worked as a researcher on series including Stacey Dooley Sleeps Over USA.

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@miawillsjourno

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Experts have revealed the eight things you should never ask AI assistants like Siri and Alexa.

Smart assistants are great for certain queries - maybe you’re checking today’s weather forecast, or asking about traffic on the roads.

But despite tech companies pushing how great their robotic assistants are, it turns out they’re just not that helpful when it comes to the big stuff.

Perhaps you find someone in a life-threatening situation and can’t remember all the CPR steps you learnt on that random course five years ago.

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Your phone is always listening for you to say 'Hey Siri'. (Yana Iskayeva/Getty Stock)
Your phone is always listening for you to say 'Hey Siri'. (Yana Iskayeva/Getty Stock)

Ask your AI assistant for some guidance, and they’ll probably hook you up with a link to a website, rather than telling you the simple steps.

But experts have now released a list of eight things you should never ask Siri or Alexa, because little do you know, they’re always listening.

They kind of have to, to be able to hear you saying their name…when you think about it!

Play doctor

You should never ask your smart assistant for health advice.

Perhaps you can get away with it for a cold, but anything you are seriously worried about needs to be checked out by a doctor.

Trusting the opinion of a smart assistant might just put you off booking an important appointment .

How to hurt someone

Kind of questionable if you’re thinking this anyway. However, if you’re just venting and saying something radical in the moment, don’t bring it up with Siri.

Those chats with your assistant could come back to bite you if you end up on the wrong side of the law.

Anything that could be against the law

If you’re trying to locate the nearest place to buy things you shouldn’t be, or anything else suspicious, don’t turn to Alexa to help you out.

Like asking your smart assistant how to hurt someone, these types of questions could be used against you.

What you say to AI assistants is recorded. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
What you say to AI assistants is recorded. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Be your telephone operator

When it comes to calling people, it’s far easier to find the number and ring them yourself.

It seems to be a lot of faff doing it though an assistant, and they have a good habit of ringing the wrong person or place.

Deal with your money

Although voice assistants can connect to your financial apps, there are many security issues with voice data.

Cyber criminals can record your voice and use it to their advantage.

Just contact the bank yourself, it’s a lot safer and risk free.

“Will I die if I eat this?”

If you find yourself in a rural spot, questioning whether you should eat those berries on the branch, the answer is just probably not.

And even if Siri says otherwise, you’re probably best steering clear.

Asking them to delete things

Not only is there a chance that the command will not be followed, you also risk assistants deleting the wrong stuff.

Smart assistants record everything

You can switch off those features if you don't want tech companies getting their virtual ears on what you say.

It’s always best to stay smarter than your smart assistant!

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