Google said Wednesday it forgot to mention that it included a microphone in its Nest Secure home alarm system, the latest privacy flub by one of the tech industry�s leading collectors of personal information.

The company said earlier this month that its voice assistant feature would be available on the system�s Nest Guard, which controls home alarm sensors.

But Google hadn�t told consumers about the device�s built-in microphone when it began selling the hubs in the fall of 2017. As recently as January , the product specs for the device made no mention of a microphone.

Google said in a statement that the omission was a mistake. �The on-device microphone was never intended to be a secret and should have been listed in the tech specs,� it said.

The microphone hasn�t been active since launch, and people have to specifically enable it going forward, Google said. Business Insider first reported the microphone had been missing from the product�s description.

Google and other Internet companies are facing increasing scrutiny over their data collection practices. The forgotten microphone is not Google�s first run-in with user privacy concerns.

An AP investigation last year found the company was tracking users� location information through its apps and search services, even if users turned the feature off.

And in 2010, Google admitted it had accidentally collected some internet activity from open Wi-Fi networks using its Street View cars.

(AP)