Thursday, November 4, 2010

Google Collects Private Info

Well, it wasn't really Google; it was Google maps. Specifically, their streetview camera car. It somehow collected personal information from people's WiFi as it was roaming the streets. The Canadian government figured this out, and is requiring Google delete the collected information by February.
Now, I wonder how much personal information it collected while roaming the U.S.? Did it get some of mine? I've seen my house on the Google map streetview. Will someone follow up on this Canadian discovery, and hold Google's feet to the fire here in our country?
My last question: How do they know the private information isn't sent somewhere else before being deleted? Hmm.

4 comments:

Caroline Keaveny said...

My family is listed as private and our wifi is password protected so hopefully they didn't get too much information.

amandap said...

That's still really scary, to be quite honest. Big Brother stuff always creeps me out!

Tisha said...

I'm sure a lot of personal info was collected in the U.S., probably more than we would even think. Big Brother, as amandap said, is really scary. It's unfortunate, but true.

Maureen Dennis Schein said...

Now, the U.K. is getting tough on Google. Check out: http://yhoo.it/b9UmfV
They say Google has deleted information obtained in three countries, has apologized, and is waiting for clearance (?) before deleting any more personal information.
Interesting . . .