Google Employee Used YouTube Backend for Nintendo Leaks

A Google employee could possibly be responsible for previous Nintendo leaks, as a significant dataset gathered by 404 Media from an undisclosed source has uncovered.

According to a recent internal report from Google, a former Google employee is suspected to be responsible for previous leaks regarding Nintendo. The report, which was compiled by employees over the course of six years, highlights various privacy and security issues within Google. It was then shared with 404 Media by an anonymous source, revealing concerning violations of privacy.

The published report by 404 Media reveals that a Google employee accessed private videos on Nintendo’s YouTube account and leaked this information before Nintendo’s planned announcements.

A product shot shows a Nintendo Switch OLED model and a white dock — Nintendo

Despite not disclosing the specific Nintendo leaks, the report from 404 Media acknowledged that the incident was deemed unintentional based on the findings of the Google report. This was just one of many disconcerting privacy issues raised by the anonymously provided data.

From 2013 to 2018, a number of similar incidents were documented in the database, which was initially only accessible to Google employees. These reports highlighted issues with Google’s own procedures and products, as well as errors made by Google staff. The dataset contained thousands of incidents, such as the exposure of payment information due to a security breach of the Sabre travel agent used by Google, and a filter designed to prevent the collection of children’s voices that was not properly implemented.

Upon receiving the internal data, 404 Media contacted Google for clarification. Google responded by explaining their process for addressing potential product issues, stating that employees have the ability to flag these issues for review by the appropriate teams. The employee also suggests a priority level for the reviewer to consider. Furthermore, Google clarified that the reports obtained by 404 Media are from over six years ago and were already reviewed and resolved at the time.