Eufy adds cloud storage camera thumbnail notification to app after criticism

Eufy added an entry to its Security app stating that the app sends data to the cloud when thumbnails are enabled. Eufy was criticized in recent weeks for doing so, but advertised that the service worked entirely locally.

The new notification in Eufy Security.
Source: ZDNet

Anker subsidiary brand Eufy added the change in version 4.5.1 of its Security app, noted ZDNet. The update adds a piece of text to the settings. It explains that thumbnails from Eufy’s security cameras, which can be used in push notifications, are “temporarily stored” on the company’s cloud servers. Users have the option of receiving text-only notifications, which must be entirely local, or push notifications with thumbnail images via the cloud.

Eufy adds the notifications after user criticism. Youtuber Paul Moore showed in November that Eufy’s thumbnails could be seen in the service’s web interface, even though the cloud storage option was turned off. That while Eufy advertised that users have the option to use its cameras completely locally. The company did not indicate that thumbnails will still be sent to its cloud servers.

Later it also turned out that Eufy camera streams remotely viewable via VLC by connecting to a specific url. According to Paul Moore, no authentication is required for this, while Eufy states that camera images are encrypted. Eufy previously denied that to The Verge. That medium was also able to view its own Eufy images without authentication via VLC, although the necessary url, which changes per stream, had to be obtained first. The company does not address this in the patch notes of its new Eufy Security update.