On the Security and Privacy Challenges of Virtual Assistants

Area of Science:

• Computer Science
• Information Security
• Human-Computer Interaction

Background:

• Virtual assistants (VAs) have gained widespread popularity since 2011.
• VAs utilize advanced natural language processing and speech recognition for conversational interaction.
• User interactions involve transmitting substantial data to cloud-based vendors for processing and storage.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the current state of research on security and privacy issues related to virtual assistants.
• To identify vulnerabilities and concerns, including unauthorized recording and malicious attacks.
• To address the gap in existing literature reviews on VA security and privacy.

Main Methods:

• Systematic identification of peer-reviewed literature focusing on VA security and privacy.
• Analysis of trends in VA vulnerabilities and user privacy concerns.
• Examination of existing research to identify gaps in the state of the art.

Main Results:

• Numerous security and privacy concerns surrounding VAs were identified.
• Significant vulnerabilities to malicious attacks exist.
• There is a notable lack of current literature reviews on VA security and privacy.

Conclusions:

• Existing research confirms widespread user worries about VA data security and privacy.
• A critical gap exists in the current body of knowledge regarding VA security and privacy.
• Future research should focus on solutions for device-free voice authentication and regulatory compliance.