Google Smart Home Device Locks Users If There Is A Potential Password Breach

Nest, Google’s smart home company, is actively locking its users out of their own accounts if it thinks their passwords have been hacked. Since last week, affected users have been receiving emails from the company. If you are among the affected one, what you need to do is tell your Nest app to erase your current password and set a new one.

The standard response of Nest to this kind of breach is to email users that they have been affected and then recommend them to change their passwords. Apparently, Nest knows that most of its users don’t even bother with this, so it is intervening by locking them out of their accounts instead.

If your Nest account has been locked, you can’t use your Nest app or receive any push notifications from all of your Nest devices. This means if an intruder is detected by your Nest Security Camera or smoke is recognized by your Nest Protect Alarm, you won’t be able to receive any notifications through your mobile, the alarm on the device still works though.

Google declined to comment on the reason behind this measure but said that this measure would be used constantly.

Despite the resets posing as a small inconvenience, it could be necessary to keep people safe online. There is evidence suggesting that people still have passwords that are either easy to guess or too simple. Furthermore, they keep reusing these passwords for different sites not minding the safety risk.

So Nest is carrying out their own measure when people don’t bother with changing and choosing more secure passwords.

If you have received a Nest email informing you of being locked from your account, you should try resetting your password as soon as possible through your app and just follow the instructions. You should also keep in mind in choosing a password that is unique and strong.

If your details have been hacked, it is better for you to reset other accounts that are using the same password.