If you think being able to purchase stuff with only your voice is neat, kids—who have no concept of money—will think it’s straight-up magic. Here are a few ways you can keep curious kids from treating your Amazon Echo like a real-life Santa Claus.
Set Up a Purchase Confirmation Code
Last month, a couple in Dallas, Texas were surprised to find a giant dollhouse and four pounds of cookies they didn’t order on their doorstep, in addition to a $170 charge on their credit card. Turns out, their six-year-old daughter had made a wish to Alexa and that digital fairy delivered.
It’s easy enough to return things to Amazon, but if you’d rather avoid that mess, the best thing you can do is set up a purchase confirmation code for your Amazon Echo, Echo Dot, or other Alexa-enabled device. Here’s how:
- Open your Amazon Alexa app on your smartphone, or go to echo.amazon.com while logged into your Amazon account.
- Select “Settings” on the left-hand side, then “Voice Purchasing.”
- Look for the “Require confirmation code” field, and enter a four-digit code of your choosing.
- Select “Save Changes.”
Now, whenever you’d like to make a purchase with Alexa, you’ll have to say that four-digit code out loud before anything gets charged to your account. Crafty kids might listen to you making an order and memorize the code, but you can change it easily enough if you get suspicious.
Change Your Echo’s “Wake Word” Regularly
Most people go with the default “Alexa” for their Echo’s wake word, but you actually have a few other options. If you switch the wake word periodically, your kids might get confused and give up on their quest for that thing they just saw in a commercial 30 seconds ago. Here’s how to change it:
- Open your Amazon Alexa app on your smartphone, or go to echo.amazon.com while logged into your Amazon account.
- Select “Settings” on the left-hand side, then “Wake Word.”
- Select the drop-down menu and choose your new wake word.
- Select “Save Changes.”
Your options are limited, however. You can only choose between Alexa, Echo, Amazon, and Computer for now.
Disable Voice Purchasing Entirely
If you’d rather avoid any possibility of accidental purchases, you can disable voice purchasing with just a few taps or clicks. Here’s how;
- Open your Amazon Alexa app on your smartphone, or go to echo.amazon.com while logged into your Amazon account.
- Select “Settings” on the left-hand side, then “Voice Purchasing.”
- Locate the “Purchase by voice” toggle, and set it to Off.
You won’t be able to make voice purchases anymore if you do this, but neither will those darn kids.
