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Android security director moving to Nest
- The former Director of Android Security has become the Director of Security and Privacy for Nest.
- Nest is a company that pioneered the smart thermostat market and was eventually purchased by Google. It is now focused on complete home automation packages.
- Security woes have affected Nest’s credibility over the past year, and this may be a response to those issues.
For the past six years, Adrian Ludwig has been the Director of Android Security at Google. This is no small task, as there are over 2 billion Android users across the globe. But now it appears Mr. Ludwig is moving on to oversee a different type of security: the security of your home.
Ludwig announced today on his Google Plus profile that he will be transitioning from the Director of Android Security to become the Director of Security and Privacy at Nest, Google’s home automation company.
Nest made a name for itself starting in 2010 with its smart thermostats, which back then was a brand new market. After Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, acquired Nest in 2014 for $3.2 billion, the product range grew into a diverse “Internet of Things” portfolio, including home security systems.
Replacing Mr. Ludwig will be David Kleidermacher, who before today was VP, Head of Security at Android.
In March last year, hackers found a serious security flaw in Nest security cameras that enabled anyone to disable the hardware using a Bluetooth command. Since Bluetooth’s range is 30 feet, a technically proficient thief would simply have to be in the general proximity of a home’s camera to disable it remotely, which is pretty much the opposite of security. Mr. Ludwig was probably brought on to Nest to combat future issues like this that tarnish the Nest reputation.
This past November, it was rumored that Nest would be joining Google’s hardware team, possibly signaling the end of the Nest brand. But today’s announcement seems to contradict that rumor. Either way, 2018 will be a big year for Adrian Ludwig as he sets out to make Nest a security brand consumers can trust.