With the update wizard, Google says that Nest has a secret microphone



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Some surprises are fun, as when a friend offers you an unexpected gift. Of the others, not so much. They can even sometimes a little scary. We have a good example of this last type of surprise, thanks to Google's latest integration with Nest.

The company announced that Nest, its home security system, was receiving an update including the Google Assistant Virtual Assistant. At first glance, this seems to be going. A Google device can now be used with another Google program. There is one glaring problem: Nest never revealed that it had a microphone, which would be necessary for such integration.

Internal business reports that "the existence of a microphone on the Nest Guard (component of the alarm, keyboard and motion sensor of the Nest Secure offer) has never been disclosed in any of the device's products. ", acknowledged Google BI that it was indeed an "error". The company stated that it should have been included in the technical specifications. Thanks!

Google added that it had never used the microphone to record anything and that it could only be activated if the user specifically allowed it. Nevertheless, it is quite suspect that Google does not tell people the existence of something that can listen to users. Especially since Nest is a security device, supposed to offer users a peace of mind.

This is another perfect example of technology companies exceeding the limits of user privacy and then waiting for people to simply accept an apology.

At the moment, Nest users can be a little more hectic when using the product. Google can say that he did not record them, but he also did not tell them that there was a secret microphone. Let's hope that Google does not forget other important details in its technical specifications.

You can read the full Internal business post here.

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