what is the story
A rare but concerning bug has been discovered in the “Receive a Message” feature of the Pixel Phone app. The issue causes the feature to send background audio to callers when a call is missed or rejected. The issue was first reported in September 2025 by a Reddit user who owned a Pixel 5 smartphone.
“Receive a message” function: how it works
The “Receive a Message” feature was introduced last year to automatically handle missed or rejected calls. When you reject or miss a call, the feature asks the caller what they want with an automated message. Meanwhile, the Phone by Google app displays a notification that says “Receiving a message.” Tapping this notification opens the real-time transcript of your response, with audio available afterward. You can respond at any time during this process.
Audio leak reports
In recent months, at least six users have reported that “Take a Message” has been sending background audio to callers. This means that the caller can hear everything that is happening around your phone while leaving a message. The first corroboration of this issue was in mid-November from a Pixel 10 owner, and another report came the next day. Later that month, another case of a Pixel 4a arrived.
Google’s response and investigation
Google is aware of these reports and is actively investigating the matter. A company spokesperson said: “Our team is aware of these reports and is actively investigating.” As a workaround, users can turn off the “Receive a Message” feature by going to the Phone app settings. From there, they can select “Receive a message” in the Call Assist grouping and press the on/off switch to turn it off.