Tech News

Tech Business News

  • Home
  • Technology
  • Business
  • News
    • Technology News
    • Local Tech News
    • World Tech News
    • General News
    • News Stories
  • Media Releases
    • Tech Media Releases
    • General Media Releases
  • Advertisers
    • Advertiser Content
    • Promoted Content
    • Sponsored Whitepapers
    • Advertising Options
  • Cyber
  • Reports
  • People
  • Science
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Digital Marketing
    • Gaming
    • Guest Publishers
  • About
    • Tech Business News
    • News Contributions -Submit
    • Journalist Application
    • Contact Us
Reading: Amazon Alexa tells 10-year-old girl to touch live plug with penny
Share
Font ResizerAa
Tech Business NewsTech Business News
  • Home
  • Technology News
  • Business News
  • News Stories
  • General News
  • World News
  • Media Releases
Search
  • News
    • Technology News
    • Business News
    • Local News
    • News Stories
    • General News
    • World News
    • Global News
  • Media Releases
    • Tech Media Releases
    • General Press
  • Categories
    • Crypto News
    • Cyber
    • Digital Marketing
    • Education
    • Gadgets
    • Technology
    • Guest Publishers
    • IT Security
    • People In Technology
    • Reports
    • Science
    • Software
    • Stock Market
  • Promoted Content
    • Advertisers
    • Promoted
    • Sponsored Whitepapers
  • Contact & About
    • Contact Information
    • About Tech Business News
    • News Contributions & Submissions
Follow US
© 2022 Tech Business News- Australian Technology News. All Rights Reserved.
Tech Business News > Technology News > Amazon Alexa tells 10-year-old girl to touch live plug with penny
Technology News

Amazon Alexa tells 10-year-old girl to touch live plug with penny

Matthew Giannelis
Last updated: May 6, 2022 9:44 pm
Matthew Giannelis
Share
SHARE

10-year-old child’s mother was furious with the digital assistant nudging her child to stick a metal item into the power socket.

The suggestion came after the girl asked Alexa for a “challenge to do”.

“Plug in a phone charger about halfway into a wall outlet, then touch a penny to the exposed prongs,” the smart speaker said.

According to Kristin Livdahl, mother of a 10-year-old child and writer, her daughter asked Alexa, Amazon Echo’s digital assistant, for a challenge.

A somewhat ominously artificial intelligence offered the baby a potentially lethal task.

“The challenge is simple: plug in a phone charger about halfway into a wall outlet, then touch a penny to the exposed prongs,” Alexa said and set the timer for 20 minutes to complete the challenge.

The mother explained that she and her daughter were exercising to warm up, and her 10-year-old asked for more, prompting a deadly offer from Amazon’s artificial intelligence.

“It was a good moment to go through internet safety and not trusting things you read without research and verification again. We thought the cesspool of YouTube was what we needed to worry about at this age—with limited internet and social media access—but not the only thing,” Livdahl explained in a Tweet.”

Amazon said it fixed the error as soon as the company became aware of it.

The dangerous activity, known as “the penny challenge”, began circulating on TikTok and other social media websites about a year ago

ByMatthew Giannelis
Follow:
Secondary editor and executive officer at Tech Business News. An IT support engineer for 20 years he's also an advocate for cyber security and anti-spam laws.
Previous Article Google Tracking Judge Rules Judge Rules Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai Can Be Questioned Over Alleged Tracking
Next Article Online fraud scams Online fraud is an ‘epidemic’
Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Amazon Alexa Plug

Tech Articles

AI Is Forcing Developers To Abandon Untyped Code

Why AI Is Forcing Developers To Abandon Untyped Code

AI has made ambiguity a liability, with developers spending over…

January 13, 2026
Gmail AI is reading your emails — here is how to stop it

Your Gmail Account May Be Feeding Google’s AI—Here’s What You Need to Know

Your Gmail account may be contributing to Google’s AI systems…

January 26, 2026
Australia's Heavy Vehicle EV Charging Market

Australia’s Heavy Vehicle EV Charging Market: A Critical Infrastructure Gap Being Filled

Australia’s heavy EV market is accelerating, but charging is the…

February 15, 2026

Recent News

Australia's New Age Assurance Technology Trial, is facing criticism.
Technology News

Social Media Age Verification Trials Under Scrutiny

3 Min Read
Data centre operator iseek bought for $400m - CEO Scott Hicks
Technology News

iseek Acquires Asset Manager HMC Capital For $400 Million

2 Min Read
Network Routing Security AN/Z
Technology News

Network Routing Security Falls Short In Australia And New Zealand

3 Min Read
BREAKTHROUGH VICTORIA $29M QUANTUM TECHNOLOGY CENTRE
Technology News

Breakthrough Victoria invests $29M in Coldquanta–Swinburne Quntum Technology Centre

5 Min Read
Tech News

Tech Business News

In 2026, technology news is shaping business outcomes faster than ever—driven by AI adoption, rising cyber risk, cloud modernisation, data regulation, and constant platform change.


Tech News keeps Australian organisations and industry professionals informed with timely reporting and practical coverage across AI, cybersecurity, cloud, enterprise IT, startups, science, people and business, plus major world and local news impacting the tech sector.


Tech Business News publishes news and analysis designed to be clear, relevant, and easy to act on. It supports the industry with technology news reports, whitepaper publishing services, and a range of media, advertising and publishing options 

About

About Us 
Contact Us 
Privacy Policy
Copyright Policy
Terms & Conditions

April, 04, 2026

Contact

Tech Business News
Melbourne, Australia
Werribee 3030
Phone: +61 431401041

Hours : Monday to Friday, 9am 530-pm.

Tech News

© Copyright Tech Business News 

Latest Australian Tech News – 2026

Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?