alt Hacker NewsTo be fair, the microphone _is_ listed on the specsheet of the LicheeRV Nano
https://wiki.sipeed.com/hardware/en/lichee/RV_Nano/1_intro.h...
I assume they didn't intend to put a mic on the KVM product, but they wanted to make a KVM product, already had this SBC product, which reusing their existing stock of helped keep cost low.
Should they have been more up front about it it? Sure, and it's not great that they had a bunch of security issues in the FW anyway, so not exactly great, but "hidden microphone in a Chinese KVM" lets the mind wander
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"hidden microphone in a Chinese KVM" is the correct way to describe what is going on.
"Reusing existing stock" is not a valid excuse. They are currently selling this device without advertising that it contains a working microphone.
The Chinese part makes one think the Chinese could access the microphone.
Nevermind that, if they could access the device, they'd also be able to read your kvm i/o.
It doesn't strike me as that useful to have a hidden microphone in a KVM product as most of the time, they're going to be stuck in server rooms with just lots of fan noise to record.
Far more of an issue would be any kind of keylogger built into the software, which is why it's best to go for devices that support open source software.
Given it's history I suspect there is nothing malicious going on here, just a Chinesium approach to building something. Security isn't documented so it's made of tissue paper.