To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE


SHARE THIS ARTICLE Printer friendly version of this page

'Open the Pod Bay Doors, Hal.' Amazon Locks a Man Out of His Smart Home over Racism Allegations

Lincoln Brown : Jun 14, 2023  PJ Media

[The algorithm] received an accusation of racism and doled out what it deemed to be the appropriate punishment. This is what one risks when one turns one's life over to a corporation. One wrong move and it all goes away with a flip of a switch. If that. Note that Jackson did not make a racist remark. He only needed to be accused of one to have his life turned off.

[PJMedia.com] Brandon Jackson recently found himself in the midst of a problem. On May 25, he discovered that his smart home, which is tied to Amazon, was no longer doing that which he was paying for it to do. In a piece on Medium, Jackson noted that his primary way of interfacing with all of this wondrous technology is through Amazon Echo via Alexa. And lo and behold, suddenly nothing would respond to his requests or commands. (Screengrab image)

At first, Jackson thought he had possibly been hacked. But he goes to great lengths to keep his passwords secure. So with security issues off the table, what could it have been? The answer is stranger than you think. Or maybe it is part and parcel of 21st century America, and should serve as a lesson for those who are so enamored of having a "House of the Future."

On May 24, a package was delivered to Jackson's home. His doorbell camera was programmed to say, "Excuse me, can I help you?" For one reason or another the driver who was walking away from the door and wearing headphones decided that the doorbell camera had somehow uttered a racial slur. The driver filed a complaint and...lights out, so to speak. (Screengrab image: from "2001-A Space Odyssey")

It took a week, but Jackson was eventually able to gain access to his devices once again. He wrote:

Through sharing my experience, I hope to encourage Amazon to reform and rethink their approach to handling such situations in the future. It's essential for customers to feel confident in the security and reliability of their services, especially when those services are integral to the functionality of their homes. It's time for Amazon to take a more customer-focused approach to problem-solving and conflict resolution.

The problem, however, is not with Amazon's customer service. Well, it is in that any large company can be painfully slow in reacting to the needs of a customer or any problems with products. But the issue is with the Almighty Algorithm (blessed be its name) that did exactly what it was supposed to do. It received an accusation of racism and doled out what it deemed to be the appropriate punishment. This is what one risks when one turns one's life over to a corporation. One wrong move and it all goes away with a flip of a switch. If that. Note that Jackson did not make a racist remark. He only needed to be accused of one to have his life turned off... Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here

Continue reading here.







SHARE THIS ARTICLE Printer friendly version of this page

To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE

Other Recent Articles from Breaking Christian News

Supreme Court Rules for Pro-Life Centers: 'The Government Has No Business Harassing Pro-Life Ministries'

President Trump Signs Executive Order Expanding High-Quality Retirement Accounts for Millions of Americans (VIDEO)

Worldwide Implications of the UAE's OPEC Exit

Democrat Activist Texas Judge Rules State Agency Must Greenlight 400-Acre Islamic City Near Dallas

New Footage of Trump Assassination Attempt Released. Here's What It Shows [Video]

MAHA Victory on Capitol Hill as GOP Agrees to Drop Special Pesticide Protections

DOJ Report Reveals Biden Admin's Expansive Religious Liberty Violations and Hostility to American Christians

SPLC's Indictment Prompts Loss of Donations from Vanguard, Fidelity Charitable Programs

President Trump Signs Bill to Fund DHS, Ending the Democrat Shutdown

Evidence Young People Are Turning to Christianity Isn’t Anecdotal; It’s Real

100 Missionaries Deploy to 10/40 Window amid Increasing Reports of Visions of 'The Man in White'

WATCH: Millionaire Tax Critic Says AGO, Dems Played Politics Instead of Protecting Residents

Total Victory: Florida Congressional Maps Are Now Official

Trump, Hegseth Praise US Performance in Iran as Congress Pushes Back; Israel Appalled at London Attack on Jews

Ex-Muslim Flees Iran, Says Jesus Appeared in Dreams to Family Members

May Day Protests are Coming. Urgent Prayers Needed!

Anthony Fauci's Former Senior Adviser Indicted for Role in COVID Cover-up

King Charles III Gifts President a Bell from Hms Trump at White House State Dinner Reinforcing US-UK Bonds

Feds Raid More Than 20 Sites in Minneapolis Fraud Probe

This is a Spiritual Battle over America; Take Your Place Praising God, Our Worship is Warfare!



Search the Articles Archives

Keyword:  
Author:  
Words Posted On:  
Day Month Year



Subscribe to
Breaking Christian News


Follow BCN on Twitter
Are You Praying for Our Government Leaders?
BCN Staff

Steve Shultz
Steve Shultz, Managing Editor
Founder and Owner


Aimee Herd
Aimee Herd, Editor


BCN Plus
Are You Praying for President Trump?
 
 

All articles on this site and emails from BCN are copyrighted property of Breaking Christian News. Permission is given to link to, or share a BCN story if proper attribution is given to both the original writer and summarizer of the story. Breaking Christian News 2005-2019. All Rights Reserved.


Breaking Christian News is a division of Elijah List Publications, Inc. All Rights Reserved


Disclaimer: Articles and links, as well as the source articles linked to; do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Breaking Christian News.

editor@breakingchristiannews.com