Google “Forgot” To Inform Its Users About The Built-in Microphone On Nest Guard

At the beginning of this month, Google made an announcement about a new update for Nest Secure (including Nest Guard), an alarm system for households. According to the company, users can now use Google Assitant, a virtual assistant technology on this device.

However, Google seemingly forgot to inform its users that Nest Guard, one of Nest Secure’s three devices, was designed with a built-in microphone.

Startlingly, the company has never mentioned the microphone’s existence in the list of specifications of the product’s components. Until February 19, a spokesperson from Google admitted that it was just an “error.”

Moreover, it revealed that designing the microphone aimed to provide some new security features for the Nest Guard system, such as detecting broken glass. The explanation from Google may not enough to ease its customers’ suspicion about what the company is committed to protecting their privacy.

Nest, which Google spent $3.2 billion purchasing in 2014, was a smart thermostat product. One year later, it worked as a standalone firm when the California-based company restructured and became a part of Alphabet Inc. Until February of last year, along with the management of Rick Osterloh as a head hardware executive, Nest came back to Google once again.

Up to now, Nest has provided a lot of Internet of Things (or IoT) devices, from video doorbells, security cameras, to smoke detectors.