Google is halting Xiaomi Nest integration after a user could see someone else’s footage

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Google has temporarily suspended Xiaomi’s integrations into the Google ecosystem after a Reddit user showed that they could see images from other people’s cameras. That’s according to Android Police, who received a statement from Google to that effect.

Xiaomi has also chimed in, apologizing to users for the issue, and blaming it on a cache issue from a Dec 26 update.

Google put Xiaomi in time out after Nest Hub user could see images from other people’s cameras

When I load the Xiaomi camera in my Google home hub I get stills from other people’s homes!! from googlehome

With all the recent revelations about the shoddy security on other security cameras, this couldn’t have happened at a worse time for Xiaomi.

Having their integrations into Google’s Home/Nest ecosystem suspended, however temporarily, is going to hurt their brand, at a time when they’re trying to push into the U.S. market. It’s also interesting to see how swiftly Google has moved to address the issue, so maybe this isn’t as isolated an occurrence as the single Reddit post would seem.

• The images shown by the user’s camera include: a sleeping baby in a crib, a porch, and a man seemingly asleep in a chair
• They appear partly corrupted, lending authenticity as the effort needed to fake them would be fairly high

It’s not the first time that security cameras have shown images from other users, Google had an issue with used Nest cams last year where they could stay attached to the prior user’s account in some cases.

What do you think? Surprised that such a bug exists? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

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Joe Rice-Jones

Maker, meme-r, and unabashed geek with nearly half a decade of blogging experience at KnowTechie, SlashGear and XDA Developers. If it runs on electricity (or even if it doesn't), Joe probably has one around his office somewhere, with particular focus in gadgetry and handheld gaming. Shoot him an email at joe@knowtechie.com.