A friend of mine works in tech security. At a dinner party, someone mentioned their Alexa had laughed randomly in the middle of the night. My friend said: “The laughing is creepy. The fact that it is always listening and you do not know what it saves — that is the actual problem.”

The room got quiet. Everyone had a smart speaker. Nobody had checked their privacy settings. I checked mine the next morning.

Delete Your Voice History

Both Alexa and Google Assistant save every voice command you have ever given them. Go to your Alexa app, Settings, Alexa Privacy, Review Voice History. Or Google Home app, Account, My Activity. You can listen to every recording. It is unsettling. Delete everything older than three months, then set auto-delete to three months instead of the default “forever.”

Turn Off “Help Improve” Settings

Both Amazon and Google have settings that let human reviewers listen to your voice recordings. You can opt out, and you should. Alexa: Settings, Alexa Privacy, Manage Your Alexa Data, toggle off “Help Improve Alexa.” Google: Google Home app, Account, toggle off “Help improve Google Home.”

Mute the Microphone When Not Using

Every smart speaker has a physical mute button. On Echo devices it is a microphone button on top. When the mic is muted, the red light comes on and the device cannot hear you. No software override. The microphone is physically disconnected. I mute mine at night.

Disable Voice Purchasing

Voice purchasing is enabled by default on Amazon Echo. Anyone who can speak near your device can order things. Turn it off or set a PIN code.

Turn Off Drop-In (Alexa)

Drop-In lets anyone in your approved contacts connect to your Echo like an intercom — they can hear everything in the room. Disable this for all devices unless you specifically use it within your household.

I still use my smart speaker. But now I know what it saves, who can access it, and how to limit it.