Apple apologises over listening to Siri audio snippets, fires contractors who heard the recordings

Apple is one company that takes pride in upholding the privacy of users in its ecosystem. However, last month, the company was called out for eavesdropping on users' conversations. It was reported that the Apple contractors were regularly listening to confidential Siri recordings, which included drug deals and recordings of couples making love. It was done as part of their job in providing quality control, or “grading”. Now, Apple has apologised for the privacy mishaps, and said it would no longer retain audio recordings of Siri interactions.

"As a result of our review, we realise we haven't been fully living up to our high ideals, and for that we apologise," Apple said in a statement. 

The “grading” was previously done on the basis of several factors including whether the activation of the voice assistant was deliberate or accidental. A report said that accidental activations were the main reason for the private conversations to be sent to Apple. However, the tech giant said on Wednesday, August 28 that users will be able to opt-in to allow Apple to listen to a select bunch of audio samples, which are said to be anonymised.

Apple has taken a tough stand against the contractors who are said to have listened to over 1,000 Siri recordings per shift. The company has reportedly laid off 300 contractors in Cork, Ireland. “More contractors throughout Europe may have been let go,” said a report in Engadget quoting the Guardian.

“Apple is committed to customer privacy and made the decision to suspend Siri grading while we conduct a thorough review of our processes.  We're working closely with our partners as we do this to ensure the best possible outcome for our suppliers, their employees and our customers around the world," a spokesperson for Apple was quoted as saying by the Irish Examiner.

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