Google Silently Downloaded Audio Listeners To User’s Computers

Without any consent.

If there is one thing that Google does not need is more negative press related to its user’s privacy invasion. However, this is exactly what they just got, thanks to a recently discovered “bug”.

According to a new report, after upgrading to Chromium 43, some users have noticed that it has silently started downloading the extension called “Chrome Hotword Shared Module”, which has a binary but no source code. While it is unknown what exactly does the black box do, the investigation has revealed that it grants itself permission to activate the microphone and start audio capture.

On a positive note, Google said that the module was simply downloaded and never activated and that the latest Chromium package has since fixed this very bug.

[Via: Independent]