Google is one of the top giants in the tech world and though the company has given the world some amazing features and devices, there might be a few glitches the company needs to sort out. Among their many glitches, the main and potentially the most dangerous one has got to be the one mismanagement that has been noticed quite recently.
Malwarebytes Labs researcher Pieter Arntz, said that he was able to spy on his wife unintentionally without any spyware application, just through a simple Google Play account.
Arntz reported that he was testing Google’s Map new feature where it enlists all the places you’ve been through in the past day, week or month, each with how much time you spent their and while testing it he discovered that the application was showing places he didn’t even go to.
Firstly, he thought it was a company glitch until he saw an update of a location he knew his wife went to. Upon investigating further, Arntz realized that a few days back he had logged into his Google Play account from his wife’s phone and didn’t log out of it.
The system when had his account logged into his wife’s phone started showing the whereabouts of his wife, without her even knowing.
According to Arntz, this can be a really low profile method of stalking someone and it is extremely dangerous considering all this happened without his wife even knowing because Google never alerted her about the login of another account on her Play.
Though Arntz did get a notification that his account was logged into a new device, his wife never got any such message telling her that a new account was logged in on her device, which he believes should have been notified.
The only way his wife could have known was if she opened her Google Play app and on the right side corner of the screen saw the initial of his husband’s name in a small circle which indicates that his account is logged in. Apart from this, there is no other way to find out.
Pieter Arntz said that he has even tried notifying Google about this glitch, but he does not expect any positive response and mere ‘this is also a feature and not a glitch’ as an answer. However, Arntz believes that such problems should immediately be solved because while he did not intentionally spy on his wife, many others can and it can be dangerous for people who are planning to get out of abusive relationships.
This isn’t the first time such a case has been reported and definitely not the last. Google really needs to buck up and improve this glitch, before it becomes a problem for many.
Read next: Survey Reveals Consumer Feelings on Subscription Fees for Social Media
Malwarebytes Labs researcher Pieter Arntz, said that he was able to spy on his wife unintentionally without any spyware application, just through a simple Google Play account.
Arntz reported that he was testing Google’s Map new feature where it enlists all the places you’ve been through in the past day, week or month, each with how much time you spent their and while testing it he discovered that the application was showing places he didn’t even go to.
Firstly, he thought it was a company glitch until he saw an update of a location he knew his wife went to. Upon investigating further, Arntz realized that a few days back he had logged into his Google Play account from his wife’s phone and didn’t log out of it.
The system when had his account logged into his wife’s phone started showing the whereabouts of his wife, without her even knowing.
According to Arntz, this can be a really low profile method of stalking someone and it is extremely dangerous considering all this happened without his wife even knowing because Google never alerted her about the login of another account on her Play.
Though Arntz did get a notification that his account was logged into a new device, his wife never got any such message telling her that a new account was logged in on her device, which he believes should have been notified.
The only way his wife could have known was if she opened her Google Play app and on the right side corner of the screen saw the initial of his husband’s name in a small circle which indicates that his account is logged in. Apart from this, there is no other way to find out.
Pieter Arntz said that he has even tried notifying Google about this glitch, but he does not expect any positive response and mere ‘this is also a feature and not a glitch’ as an answer. However, Arntz believes that such problems should immediately be solved because while he did not intentionally spy on his wife, many others can and it can be dangerous for people who are planning to get out of abusive relationships.
This isn’t the first time such a case has been reported and definitely not the last. Google really needs to buck up and improve this glitch, before it becomes a problem for many.
Read next: Survey Reveals Consumer Feelings on Subscription Fees for Social Media
