Police Seek to Acquire Amazon Echo Voice Recordings to Assist in Murder Case

The police have issued a search warrant to Amazon to share audio recordings and other data from an Echo device in the hopes that it will shed light on an alleged murder, in what is likely the first case of its kind according to the Information.

Last year, a man was found dead in the hot tub of Jason Andrew Bates, a Bentonville, Arkansas resident who has since been charged with first-degree murder. Bates happens to own an Echo voice-activated device. Echo is an always-on device, meaning it’s always listening though it only records if a user utters a keyword or phrase. Inevitably, people unintentionally trigger Echo’s recording function from time to time, especially if they frequently come within close proximity to it. That data is then transmitted to Amazon servers.

Amazon has twice refused to hand over Bates’ audio data to the police, though it has shared his account information and purchase history. The company sent the following statement explaining its stance to Business Insider:

“Amazon will not release customer information without a valid and binding legal demand properly served on us. Amazon objects to overbroad or otherwise inappropriate demands as a matter of course.”

It’s not clear whether any of the data on Bates’ Echo will prove to be pertinent to the police investigation, though it could help establish that he was present at his home at the time of the victim’s death. Police have also reported that other smart home devices owned by Bates have yielded useful information. For instance, a smart water meter shows that 140 gallons of water were used between 1 AM and 3 AM of the night in question. Police allege that the water was used to wash away potentially incriminating evidence.

Whether or not Echo helps police further their investigation, the episode raises larger privacy issues that have arisen following the proliferation of connected devices that track and record our activities while we’re at home.