back to article Google Nest slurps your life into the Matrix? The TRUTH

Thought your home was safe from corporate surveillance? Think again, because thermostat-maker Nest is set to share your personal data with its mother company, Google. Nest Labs has admitted to the Wall Street Journal that personal assistant system Google Now will be among the first non-Nest apps to connect to Nest sensors and …

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  1. heyrick Silver badge
    Happy

    So if we want to break into your house...

    ...we just wait until it tweets "Elvis {$YOURNAME} has left the building!".

    1. heyrick Silver badge
      Happy

      Re: So if we want to break into your house...

      And the really clever systems could follow that up with "Joe Bloggs is currently robbing John Smith's house!" [you and a billion others Like this]

      1. Khaptain Silver badge

        Re: So if we want to break into your house...

        following on :

        Latest Tweet :

        John Smith's robot has been remanded in custody for violently tazing Joe Bloggs. Online tweeters tweeted that Mr Bloggs was apparently found in a shocked state with one hand still desperately clutching his smartphone, the last unfinshed tweet simply said "ohh fuc.......".

    2. BillG
      Happy

      Re: So if we want to break into your house...

      "We’re not becoming part of the greater Google machine,” insisted lied Matt Rogers, co-founder of Nest.

      1. Gordon 10
        Terminator

        Re: So if we want to break into your house...

        We are not becoming part of the greater Google machine..... (sub vocalisation) but they have added our biological and technical distinctiveness to their own.

    3. LarsG

      My car

      Parks itself, tells me if I am about to hit another vehicle, applies the brakes if I don't, calls the emergency services when I crash........

      So WHY is it so difficult to produce a Kettle that turns on the tap and fills itself and then makes the best cup of tea in the world, a toaster that visits the bread bin, picks up a couple of slices and toasts it to perfection because the artificial intelligence knows how I like it, a knife that spreads butter and then marmite without leaving crumbs or butter behind.

      Finally a plate that washes itself.

      Is this too much to ask?

      1. DropBear
        Joke

        Re: My car

        'So WHY is it so difficult to produce a Kettle that turns on the tap and fills itself and then makes the best cup of tea in the world...'

        Now THIS would make a fine Kickstarter project. Any takers...? I mean, how hard can it be?!?

      2. Alan Edwards

        Re: My car

        > So WHY is it so difficult to produce a Kettle that turns on the tap and fills itself and then makes

        > the best cup of tea in the world

        Shouldn't be that hard. I already want to modify the 'one cup' kettle I have with a float-controlled connection to mains water. It knows how much water to use for a mug of tea and automatically refills the high-speed boiler from the tank on the back.

        We had a coffee machine in work years back that used tea leaves to make tea, via a paper filter on a roll - you could put something like that on the front of a one-cup kettle. You'd need a fridge for the milk though, UHT milk makes yucky tea (IMO), plus a conveyor belt for sugar/cubes.

        > a toaster that visits the bread bin, picks up a couple of slices and toasts it to perfection

        The hotel conveyor belt toasters already come close - add a dispenser for the bread slices, and some way of spreading butter and marmalade, job-done.

  2. Joel 1
    Coat

    Cloudy streaming

    "Dropcam allows streaming video to be sent over the cloud.....

    The cameras could detect grey skies and decide to ramp the heat up, for instance."

    I assume the cameras wouldn't be able to stream any video if the skies were blue and cloudless...

  3. Neil Barnes Silver badge

    Why such complexity?

    A camera that detects grey skies to decide to turn up the heating? A system that asks for local weather (from an earlier post)?

    This is a classic case of creeping featurism. The technology is already extant: it's a thermostat. In a slightly more complex system, it's a split-zone system, with timers.

    Do we really need, for the majority of people who work regular hours, more than this?

    1. Crazy Operations Guy

      Re: Why such complexity?

      The whole of humanity is creeping featurism...

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      @Neil Barnes - Re: Why such complexity?

      You don't get it! This is not being done for your needs, they don't give a damn about what you need. All they are looking for is building a steady revenue stream.

    3. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Why such complexity?

      Why such complexity?

      A camera that detects grey skies to decide to turn up the heating? A system that asks for local weather (from an earlier post)?

      Ah - that's only a question until you realise the real aim: to get you to install cameras inside your house. Knowingly. Voluntarily. They will make ANY kind of promise and excuse to get you this far - if they cannot get you directly with Nest, they will do it with Dropcam, and if that doesn't work they'll send either a Streetview car around of a Glasshole.

      They have genuinely taken over the war on privacy from the US government - it's almost like the government has outsourced it to Google which, admittedly, isn't a bad idea because they're good at dreaming up excuses - just see how many believed the "do no evil" BS.

      Small BS example of this round of privacy attacks: Our privacy policy clearly limits the use of customer information to providing and improving Nest’s products and services

      That is THEIR policy which they not only can adjust at any time, but which is also not independently audited. Or, in short, it's just hot air. But hey, they need that for their balloons..

  4. www.momentum.im

    "the thermostat can then turn lights off and on to trick burglars into thinking people are inside a target house" the same thing is achieved today with a 5$ device that does not data mine you. Is it really worth it?

    Furthermore, the bussiness model of ad-subsidized free services, in exchange for data mining, is it becoming a barrier to entry markets and innovation, for players that dont want to enforce on their users this bussiness model?

    1. Squander Two

      > Furthermore, the bussiness model of ad-subsidized free services, in exchange for data mining, is it becoming a barrier to entry markets and innovation, for players that dont want to enforce on their users this bussiness model?

      It does seem to be, even -- weirdly -- when it's not cheap. Nest kit is quite expensive, is it not? I have a mechanical device that fits between the lightbulb and the light fitting. Flicking the light on then off then on triggers random mode. It cost less than a tenner. But I bet Nest will somehow outcompete them. Probably because GOOGLE MAGIC!

  5. Elmer Phud

    Share and Enjoy

    Go stick your head in a pig

  6. Crazy Operations Guy

    I think I'm going to move to hidden cave in the mountains and become a hermit...

    All these devices are starting to worry me. It won't be long before there is no longer a square meter on this planet where you aren't tracked and recorded.

    I think my next project will be to convert my house into a giant Faraday cage and wire up a bunch of Ir and UV LEDs to blind cameras, maybe some sub- and ultra-sonic white noise generators to deafen microphones too...

    1. hplasm
      Happy

      Re: I think I'm going to move to hidden cave in the mountains and become a hermit...

      "I think my next project will ..."

      Attract people looking for an illegal rave?

      1. Crazy Operations Guy

        Re: I think I'm going to move to hidden cave in the mountains and become a hermit...

        Why the hell would I want to host an illegal rave? I just want to use the bathroom without Google knowing about it and getting bombarded by advertisements for toilet paper.

    2. Khaptain Silver badge

      Re: I think I'm going to move to hidden cave in the mountains and become a hermit...

      They're coming to take me away, ha-haaa!!

      They're coming to take me away, ho-ho, hee-hee, ha-haaa

      To the funny farm. Where life is beautiful all the time and I'll be

      happy to see those nice young men in their clean white coats and they're

      coming to take me away, ha-haaa!!!!!

      Napoleon XIV

    3. A Twig
      Coat

      Re: I think I'm going to move to hidden cave in the mountains and become a hermit...

      Lots of foil covered insulation helps block RF and keeps your house warmer. With the reduction in energy bills you can afford to keep your heating on all the time, then no need for smart stuff!

    4. Alan W. Rateliff, II
      Paris Hilton

      Re: I think I'm going to move to hidden cave in the mountains and become a hermit...

      Afghanistan is quite lovely, and has some of the nicest and most spacious caves available.

      @LarsG: If a perfect pot of tea could make itself, we could never get that damned door open.

  7. Gene Cash Silver badge

    "its gizmos could be switched off"

    Really? Like I'm going to switch off my thermostat and my fire detector? Do they really think that's an option?

    1. This post has been deleted by its author

  8. JDX Gold badge

    "a thermostat which could tell when a person was on holiday"

    Why can't I just tell the thermostat I'm on holiday?

    1. hamcheeseandonion
      Big Brother

      Re: "a thermostat which could tell when a person was on holiday"

      ooooooooooooooo K!

      Your're going to have a deep and meaningful exchange of information with your thermostat, are you?

      I refer you to the humourous ditty from the Khaptain.

    2. Stuart Castle Silver badge

      Re: "a thermostat which could tell when a person was on holiday"

      Or, if you have a combi boiler like mine, just switch the boiler off.. The termostat can do what it wants then, it won't be able to heat the house

      Ok, it means that you come back to a cold house, but my house warms up in a couple of minutes even when the central heating is cold started.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "admits..."

    You have to opt in to have anonymous data sent back to Google (for statistical purposes) so it's hardly admitting they take your data,scaremongering much?

    Say what you want about Google collecting data but I had a look at my behavioural profile at Google the other day and it was completely empty, so I tested it out via analytics and no data was shared not even via adwords. Why? because I hadn't ever opted in to share it. In fact many policies they have explicitly forbid you as a website owner sending them PII.

    Could Google override this? yes sure and hide it away. They could also secretly send it all to the Secret Police but they seem to be as transparent as anyone is allowed to be on that.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      @AC - Re: "admits..."

      So, Google showed you your behavioral profile they build upon you. And you trust them to be absolutely honest. You're so naive!

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: "admits..."

      You have to opt in to have anonymous data sent back to Google (for statistical purposes) so it's hardly admitting they take your data,scaremongering much?

      Ah, and you are going to verify Google isn't "accidentally" doing that already how? It's not like they are terribly transparent or consider themselves subject to pesky local privacy laws..

  10. Mike Bell

    Smack Down

    It's gonna get smacked down by Apple Home Automation anyway.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Smack Down

      Honestly, a bit more effort please. Unless you make disparaging remarks about Android nobody will downvote you.

      But fear not, we'll get you to troll properly. Hang out long enough and you'll see how it's done :)

  11. Fink-Nottle

    "a Mercedes Benz which notices when you're driving home"

    I have a Nest, and it's certainly an improvement on the old thermostat which was not family friendly in the least. However, I don't think I'd be able to convince 'her inside' that we need a £30,000 update to the thermostat ...

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Eyes In The Bath

    Oh crap, I'm going to get more of those sodding enlargement pill advertisements now!

  13. Sebastian Brosig
    Unhappy

    > tell when a person was on holiday. Once in "away mode", the thermostat

    > can then turn lights off and on to trick burglars into thinking people are inside a target house.

    Unless the burgular subscribes to the underground datafeed of a haxx0r inside Nest's database, in which case a burglary will be scheduled automatically in his/her work diary.

  14. adnim

    Until

    it becomes a criminal offence NOT to use such devices, until choice is removed, I really don't give a shit. No matter how useful my shit is to some marketeer would want to throw food advertising in my direction.

  15. RyokuMas
    Big Brother

    Little by little...

    First thermostats and lights and the "internet of things", all sending anonymous data back to Google if you opt in... and people accept it.

    Next obvious step - remove the opt in... and people will accept it, because it's only a small change.

    A series of these small steps later, and we all have telescreens in our homes, watching us and reporting our every move back to Google and the NSA watching over their shoulder, with no anonymity and no opt-out... and even though people may start not wanting it, it'll be too late.

    ... and we'll always have been at war with Eastasia...

    1. Sir Runcible Spoon
      Facepalm

      Re: Little by little...

      "we all have telescreens in our homes, watching us and reporting our every move back to Google and the NSA watching over their shoulder"

      What, like smart TV's and XBOX One's ?

      1. RyokuMas
        Paris Hilton

        Re: Little by little...

        "What, like smart TV's and XBOX One's ?"

        I was thinking more of Chromecast, but yeah, those too...

  16. VinceH
    Big Brother

    "Addressing anyone who is uncomfortable with being spied on, Nest was keen to to point out that its gizmos could be switched off don't have to be bought, if ever a person felt like shutting the private sector spooks out of their life."

    Fixed

  17. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Google vs in-laws

    Relative of Spouse has a nice little holiday cottage in the countryside where we go and stay occasionally. Relative recently got a new (non Nest) remote thermostat device, which is actually incredibly useful for holiday home, because the place takes a good day or so to heat up in the Winter. Relative was enthusiastically showing off iThingy app which shows temperature of house right now. Brilliant.

    So the next time we go up there for a break Relative calls Spouse to say "WTF? WHY HOUSE SO HOT?" Cue emotional-blackmail-based distress. So now when we go there we just freeze. Or take our own electric heaters.

    I leave it as an exercise for the reader to decide how much convergence there might be between the behaviour of Google and Relative.

  18. JeffyPoooh
    Pint

    "...detect grey skies and decide to ramp the heat up..."

    Rolls-eyes...

    Ramping the heat up or down based on the colour of the skies is perhaps a sign that one should stop living in a drafty old castle; and start to retrofit some efficiencies. An energy efficient house is well insulated, has some thermal mass, and requires relatively low power heaters. It's inherently more-or-less temperature stable. You're not going to yank its temperature up and down 37 times a day with each passing cloud; but night-time set-backs are still feasible.

    1. heyrick Silver badge
      Coat

      "but night-time set-backs are still feasible"

      I'm sure that will be noticed, and appropriate advertising added to your profile.

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