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Beneficial and Harmful Effects Hacks

Hacks

Lesson

Choose a computing innovation not discussed in class and:

  1. Identify and describe the innovation
  2. Analyze beneficial effects across multiple categories
  3. Analyze harmful effects across multiple categories
  4. Explain an effect that could be viewed as both beneficial and harmful
  5. Identify at least one unintended use or consequence
  6. Propose measures to maximize benefits and minimize harms

Voice Assistants

  1. Voice assistants are applications that users can use with their voice to help them with both everyday and complex tasks, like making a grocery list or sending an email, for example Siri or Alexa.
  2. They can increase sales for businesses that allow VA integration, like ordering items off of Amazon. They can also increase interactivity with homes and home security by automating the lights and locks on windows and doors. Voice assistants can also be useful for those who need to communicate hands-free, like mothers or those without access to their phones.
  3. However, VAs can also cause harms. They can pose a privacy risk if the application sells data from the user’s recordings to the highest bidder. They can also invaisvely listen in on conversations and use that to improve marketing strategies at the expense of the user. This technology can also fail and leave users in a difficult situation if they relied on their VA.
  4. The convenience of a VA when it comes to playing music, asking about the weather, or sending a text could act as a security risk
  5. An unintended use of a VA is a child using the service to bypass parental restrictions, which could lead to negative impacts on that child.
  6. Stricter governmental regulations on data collected from users, changing sensitivity settings for wake words, and increasing user awareness could all mitigate harms and maximize risks.