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What you need to know
- Several Pixel users reported that their device was leaking microphone audio to callers when the Take a Message voicemail feature was triggered.
- Reports suggest the issue affects Pixels from the Pixel 4 to Pixel 10 across regions like the US, UK, and Australia.
- Users noticed the green mic indicator turning on during voicemail, confirming unintended audio sharing with callers.
- Google investigated the issue and has since disabled the feature on Pixel 4 and Pixel 5 series phones.
A strange bug on Google Pixel phones has surfaced that may be leaking your audio to callers when a call is sent to voicemail.
Google Pixels come packed with useful Phone app features, like blocking spam calls before they even ring, holding calls for you during long wait times, and Take a Message. The latter lets AI take over and tell callers you can't pick up, records their voicemail, and then transcribes it so you can quickly see what they said and decide how to respond.
While Take a Message sounds genuinely useful, it appears the feature has been behaving oddly over the past few months. According to reports, it may be unintentionally sharing your microphone audio with callers.
As spotted by 9to5Google through multiple Reddit reports, when users rely on Take a Message, their side of the audio sometimes gets transmitted to the caller. To be clear, the feature is supposed to decline the call and record only the caller's message, not capture or share your audio, but that doesn't seem to be the case for some users.
How to turn off Take a Message for now
The issue appears to affect Pixels across multiple generations, from the Pixel 4 series all the way up to the Pixel 10, and the feature is currently available in regions like the US, UK, Ireland, and Australia.
Several users report seeing the green microphone indicator turn on even after the call is routed to Take a Message, suggesting their microphone was active, and audio was being shared without their knowledge. Multiple Reddit threads describe similar behavior.
Google has acknowledged the issue, stating that the team is aware of the reports and is actively investigating. Until a fix rolls out, the safest option is to disable Take a Message entirely.
To do that, open the Phone app on your Pixel, tap the menu button at the top, go to Settings, select Take a Message under the Call Assist section, and turn the feature off.
