Katie covered all things how-to at CNET, with a focus on Social Security and notable events. When she's not writing, she enjoys playing in golf scrambles, practicing yoga and spending time on the lake ...

When you set up a smart bulb in a lamp, you get to name that lamp, so Alexa will know which lamp you are asking her to turn on. In my living room, I’ve set up lamps called table lamp and floor lamp.

Academic researchers found that certain microphones convert light to sound, allowing voice commands to be sent to voice-controlled (VC) devices like Google Home, Amazon Echo, Facebook Portal, ...

You can use Alexa commands to play music, check the weather, order food, and even turn on your lights. Before giving a command, you need to say the "wake word" — by default, it's just "Alexa." Alexa ...

Smart voice assistants can be hijacked by attackers using lasers to send them remote, inaudible commands. Researchers have discovered a new way to hack Alexa and Siri smart speakers merely by using a ...

A new photoacoustic flaw in voice assistants such as Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant can render them vulnerable to a number of attacks that use lasers to inject inaudible commands into smartphones ...

If you still think Alexa is just for setting timers and playing music, it's time to catch up. After 11 years, Amazon finally gave its voice assistant a massive brain upgrade with the new, AI-powered ...

My Dad has been told by a couple of different doctors to consider light/ambient music to help with his insomnia. For various practical reasons, this would have to be through Bluetooth ...

Researchers have found that MEMS microphones are so sensitive they can interpret light as sound, allowing an attacker to shoot silent commands to voice assistants from afar. Since the bug is general ...

Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. is a senior reporter covering technology, gaming, and more. He joined The Verge in 2019 after nearly two years ...

It's still a mystery to researchers at the University of Michigan and The University of Electro-Communications (Tokyo) – just what physically enabled them to inject commands into the embedded ...