Is Google spying on what you are saying via your computer’s microphone?

They well could be if you use Chromium, and that’s the crux a new accusation from Rick Falkvinge, the founder of the Pirate Party.

Falkvinge claims in a blog post that Google has been stealth-downloading audio listeners onto every computer that runs Chromium, the open-source code on which Google’s Chrome is based and transmits that audio data back to Google.

The original news came via a bug report by a Debian (a famous Linux distribution) user, who noted that “When I start Chromium, it downloads something,” followed by status information that includes the lines “Microphone: Yes” and “Audio Capture Allowed: Yes”.

“Effectively, this means that Google had taken itself the right to listen to every conversation in every room that runs Chrome somewhere, without any kind of consent from the people eavesdropped on,” Falkvinge says.

The feature appears to be the code Google is using to bring its excellent OK Google voice search feature from Android to laptops and desktops, however the concern Falkvinge has isn’t that this feature is available, but the microphone is monitoring everything a user says.

“Obviously, your own computer isn’t the one to analyze the actual search command, Google’s servers do,” Falkvinge explains. “Which means that your computer had been stealth configured to send what was being said in your room to somebody else, to a private company in another country, without your consent or knowledge, an audio transmission triggered by… an unknown and unverifiable set of conditions.”

The other problem seen is that initially there was no option to switch it off, although apparently Google is now offering an opt-out switch, meaning that users will be monitored unless they dig through the settings on Chrome/ Chromium to switch it off; given that most users won’t even realize they are being monitored, fewer again would know they could turn it off.

Google has responded claiming that the feature is actually opt-in, not opt-out as it isn’t turned on by default, contradicting Falkvinge’s claim.

Big brother is watching

On one hand, Chrome users will undoubtedly welcome the introduction of OK Google, as the service is brilliant on newer Android phones.

However, Falkvinge has a point when he claims that because it listens to everything, it is essentially a wire-tap. Google may claim it will do no evil with what it captures, but what’s to stop others seeking to access this data? What’s to stop Google down the line using the audio it captures to further refine its targeted ads, or even worse, builds an even bigger database on every user that it already has?

It’s not clear when the feature will be rolled out in Chrome, but if it’s already in Chromium it’s only a matter of time.

Image credit: bastianhaas/Flickr/CC by 2.0