Since this morning, several Belgian and European Waze users have found themselves confronted with an unexpected bug. The GPS navigation app suddenly changed language, displaying texts in Hebrew or Turkish, and sometimes changing other settings like units of measurement or driving mode.
On November 6, many users of Waze, a GPS navigation application owned by Google, reported an unusual bug: texts and indications spontaneously transformed into Hebrew, Turkish, or even Russian.
Some testimonials, relayed via the Alert us button, report language and configuration changes without user intervention.
Thus, a user complained: “My Waze changed the language by itself, it changed my car, it changed the speed limits… “. For his part, Adam, also affected by the problem, says: “He put my car in taxi mode, which meant that I took taxi lanes without realizing it. We pray not to get a fine.“
A breakdown mentioned on Downdetector and social networks
Reports of this bug are increasing on Downdetector, a site specializing in monitoring application crashes. Users in Belgium, but also in France and the United Kingdom, have mentioned a sudden change of language, as well as the display of unusual units of measurement. Those who traditionally use miles have seen their application shift to kilometers, and vice versa, making route directions difficult to interpret.
On social networks, the bug seems to arouse incomprehension and sometimes concern. Some users fear being penalized for accidentally using reserved lanes, others simply struggle to understand the new instructions in their application.
No communication from Waze
For the moment, the company has not yet officially communicated on this problem. Waze provided neither explanations nor solutions.
Waze, remember, is a navigation application that relies on collaborative data to optimize routes. It allows drivers to report road incidents or speed cameras, and usually adapts to the habits of its users.
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