Sony lets PS5 owners record their voice chats and make fun...

Some PlayStation 4 users who downloaded the latest 8.0 update received an unwanted surprise this morning: their console told them that Sony has the right to record their voice for moderation purposes.

Here are some examples:

Initially, the update’s release notes made no mention of voice recordings. But at some point today, Sony made it clear what the news meant in an update to its official blog post.

Here is Sony’s exact language:

After this update, users will receive a notification about party security and that voice chats in parties may be recorded. Voice chat recording for moderation is a feature available on PS5 at startup that allows users to record their voice chats on PS5 and submit them for moderation review. The popup you are currently seeing on PS4 is to let you know that if you join a chat with a PS5 user (after launching it) they may be sent to YOU ​​from their PS5 console.

To translate this statement, by participating in a voice chat, your voice can also be recorded with the older PlayStation 4 and sent to Sony for moderation by another user. This could certainly be invasive – in theory anything you say in a voice chat could be sent to Sony without your express consent. But the feature could also be a useful tool to help people report bad party members who may be harassing them.

Based on Sony’s language, it doesn’t seem like Sony is actively listening to all of the conversations you have with your friends during your final rounds Fall guys.

The 8.0 software is also changing the way parties and messages work, adding new avatars, controls for parental communication, and support for authentication apps for two-factor authentication.

In another step in preparation for the launch of the PS5, Sony has renamed the PS4 Remote Play apps for mobile, Mac and PC to PS Remote Play. The app lets you connect to a PlayStation 5 on the new console starting next month.