Internet-connected devices have been a remarkable development, but they also introduce significant security and privacy risks. A notable example of this was a privacy mishap involving smart IP cameras from the Chinese manufacturer, Xiaomi.

The issue came to light when a Reddit user discovered their Google Nest Hub was mistakenly pulling random, distorted, black-and-white camera feeds from other users' homes instead of their own Xiaomi Mijia camera. The user shared photographic evidence, which included still images of other people's homes, an older adult sleeping in a chair, and a baby sleeping in its crib.

The flaw did not appear to be with Google's products but was likely a bug in how Xiaomi implemented the camera's integration with the Nest Hub.

In response, Google confirmed they were aware of the issue and were in contact with Xiaomi to work on a fix. As a critical precaution, Google temporarily disabled all integrations with Xiaomi devices on their Nest Hub and Google Assistant platforms to prevent further privacy breaches.

While the bug didn't seem to affect all users, the strong recommendation at the time was for users to manually unlink their Xiaomi cameras from their Google Nest Hub until a permanent patch was released.