Parody Google Nest site plays on privacy concerns with fake services, including a “personal drone”

Anyone who has followed Google over the past few years knows that it has had more than its fair share of privacy issues. The company’s had run ins with the UK government, US government, and others about privacy concerns, in addition to facing criticism over Google Glass. Microsoft has also mocked Google for its privacy issues as part of its “Scroogled” ad campaign. Now, a German activist group that calls themselves Peng Collective has launched a new website that parodies Google, its privacy issues, and apparent need to know everything about everyone.

Dubbed “Google Nest”, an obvious play on Google’s recent acquisition of the Nest thermostat company, the website lists a variety of fake Google services that mock Google’s privacy policies and practices. The fake services include Google Trust, Google Hug, Google Bee and Google Bye. Google Trust is a “data insurance” service that lets you “pay with your data.” The more Google products you use, the higher your insurance payout will be in case of data misuse through secret service or private criminals.

Google Hug is a service that, like the title implies, helps you find people to hug. This service plays off the thinking that human-interaction has hit an all-time low because of the internet and that people never interact in person anymore. Google Bee is a “personal drone” service that “watches over your house and family when you are away.” The bee flies “up 1200 feet above you and collects information determined by you.”

Finally, Google Bye promises that “you’re remembered in the right way” after you die. After you pass away, the information will all be put together into a memorial and published for the world.

Obviously none of these services are real in any way shape or form and extremely exaggerate Google’s privacy concerns, which have gotten considerably better over the past year. And while the website is well designed and definitely looks like a legitimate Google site, it’s essentially an April Fools joke/Scroogled campaign gone wrong.