Android TV Bug Exposes Private Google Photos Of Users

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One of the perks of having an Android TV is that users can display their Google Photos albums as a screensaver when the TV is idle.

However, a Twitter user found himself in a predicament when his Android TV started showing private photo libraries of many other users.

As first spotted by XDA developers, the Google Home bug allowed @wothadei to check out the linked accounts of different Google users.

On top of that, personal Google photos of these linked accounts could have been displayed through the Ambient Mode screensaver settings. While the function didn’t work in the end, it still raises a lot of privacy concerns.

Google has acknowledged the issue and is still trying to find the source of the bug.

In a statement, Google said “We take our users’ privacy extremely seriously. While we investigate this bug, we have disabled the ability to remotely cast via the Google Assistant or view photos from Google Photos on Android TV devices.”

Meanwhile, Vu, the Android TV maker made a statement informing “it was a software malfunction of the Google Home App”. Another Twitter user, facing the same issue, confirmed that the problem is not exclusive to Android TV manufacturers.

Relying on Google’s instructions, @wothadei, later on, reset his Android TV. Due to which, he is now unable to access Google photos, even his own. As of now, he hasn’t been able to fix the issue.

Also Read: OnePlus 7 Leaked Renders: Pop-Up Selfie Camera, No Notch, 3 Rear Cameras
Charanjeet Singh

Charanjeet Singh

Charanjeet owns an iPhone but his love for Android customization lives on. If you ever ask him to choose between an iPhone, Pixel or Xiaomi; better if you don't.
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