There’s no doubt about it, smart speakers and voice assistant systems like the Alexa-enabled Echo and its extended family are a game-changer when it comes to complete smart home control.
However, with any web-based voice controller like those from Amazon and Google, every time you speak to your device, there’s a good chance that the data is being collected for use later.
Indeed, Amazon have even revealed that they keep transcripts of any voice interactions with Alexa unless otherwise deleted by users.
Ultimately, the reasons that the tech companies are collecting such data are almost certainly to do with training their AI and making it smarter by exposing it to as wide-ranging a data set as possible, but all the same, sometimes, you just want to keep your privacy, well, private.
Here at For the Smart Home, we’re pretty stoked about the potential for smart home voice control and increasingly intelligent AI assistants, but we’re equally all about the protection of personal data and general privacy when it comes to using such devices.
The good news here is that deleting your voice history data from the Alexa database is actually really simple once you now how to do it.
Here’s how to get started.
How to Access and Delete Alexa Voice Recording History
Once upon a time, it was somewhat trickier to actually get at your voice recording history within the Alexa service but it’s now been made much simpler by Amazon.
Deleting Alexa Voice Commands and Recordings from Today
This one is a cinch.
Amazon’s updated privacy standards have made it super-easy to remove any records of your voice interactions from that day.
Just say:
“Alexa, delete everything I said today”
This command will remove any others you’ve given Alexa that day and if you’re looking to keep your voice command privacy on lockdown, is a good thing to do at the end of each day.
Deleting Individual Alexa Voice Commands and Recordings
Within the Alexa app itself, there’s a little more granularity on offer meaning you can remove specific recordings or commands rather than wiping the entire memory of the day.
From the app, tap on the menu on the top left of the home screen and navigate to:
Setting > Alexa Account > History
From here you can access a list of your historically ordered interactions with Alexa.
Simply tap the question or command from the list to either listen to the command that was recorded or to delete, tap the button below which says Delete Voice Recording and the individual record will be removed from the database.
Easy.
Deleting Your Entire Alexa Voice Command and Recording History
If you’re looking to find and delete your entire Alexa recording history, it’s now also easier to do this too.
Start by navigating to the Manage Your Content and Devices section of Amazon’s site.
Once you’re there, find your device from the list, and click on the dots to open the options for this speaker.
Clicking the option Delte Voice Recordings will do what it says and clears the historical memory on your smart speaker of any legacy recordings.
