---
title: "Google Accidentally Sent Users’ Private Videos to Strangers"
description: "Google says a \"technical issue\" caused its Takeout service to send backups of users' videos to strangers in November 2019."
date: "2020-02-04"
modified: "2020-02-04"
authors:
  - name: "Kristin Houser"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/kristin"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/google-accidentally-sent-users-private-videos-strangers"
categories:
  - "Artificial Intelligence"
  - "Future Society"
  - "Google"
tags:
  - "data privacy"
  - "Google"
  - "google takeout"
  - "the digest"
---

# Google Accidentally Sent Users’ Private Videos to Strangers

![Google says a "technical issue" caused its Takeout service to send backups of users' videos to strangers in November 2019.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/google-accidentally-sent-users-private-videos-strangers.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Google/Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

## Video Exchange

If you use [Google Takeout](<https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-google-takeout>) to back up your data, there's a chance a stranger now has your [private videos](<https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/4/21122044/google-photos-privacy-breach-takeout-data-video-strangers>).

On Monday, Google began notifying some Takeout users that the service had experienced a "technical issue" between November 21 and November 25, 2019. Users who requested a copy of their backed-up data that week may have received videos belonging to other Takeout users — or had their own videos sent to random strangers.

## All Better

In its [message](<https://twitter.com/jonoberheide/status/1224525738268905477>) to users, Google wrote that it had already identified and resolved the technical issue, adding in a [statement](<https://ww.9to5google.com/2020/02/03/google-photos-video-strangers/>) to *9to5Google* that it's "very sorry this happened."

Google recommended in its message that users perform a new export of their data and delete the prior one — though there's no mention of the company verifying that users who ended up with others' private videos actually do delete them.

## Privacy Nightmare

Google Takeout doesn't only back up videos — it's capable of backing up everything Google-related a user does on their devices.

That means your data backup could include your internet search history through Chrome, your emails through Gmail, your home address through [Google Maps](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/guy-causes-google-maps-traffic-jams-99-cell-phones>), your health data thorough [Google Fit](<https://futurism.com/neoscope/google-buys-fitbit-promises-not-use-health-data-sell-ads>), and countless other details about your personal life.

So, while this Google Takeout issue affected only videos, it's hard not to consider how much bigger of a privacy nightmare it could've been.

**READ MORE:** [Google admits it sent private videos in Google Photos to strangers](<https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/4/21122044/google-photos-privacy-breach-takeout-data-video-strangers>) \[*The Verge*\]

**More on Google:** *[Guy Causes Google Maps "Traffic Jams" by Carrying 99 Cell Phones](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/guy-causes-google-maps-traffic-jams-99-cell-phones>)*

### Author social links  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinjhouser>)