Google calls for world privacy code
p2pnet news | Freedom:- Google, the only company to totally fail a six-month investigation into privacy practices employed by key Net-based companies, is, “calling on businesses and regulators throughout the world to adopt international standards for protecting consumer privacy online and offline”.
So says Associated Press.
Has Google, which has made it clear the requirements of its bottom line come before all else, suddenly decided to change its spots?
Perhaps. But cynics believe the sudden interest in consumer rights is, rather, linked not to the public good, but to its controversial plans to buy online advertising company DoubleClick for $3.1 billion.
Ten years ago, Tim Berners-Lee invented the web,” said Alan Herrell in 2000, going on, “Five years ago, the advertisers discovered it. This year, with DoubleClickâs concoction of the poisoned cookie, the advertisers are about to ruin it for pixel mechanics and privacy advocates alike.”
In the background, “there’s a swelling wave of concern on the part of privacy advocates and the general public alike over whether or not the likes of Google, whose Do No Evil slogan is becoming increasingly tarnished, and DoubleClick can be trusted with confidential information,” said p2pnet when news of the DoubleClick deal first broke, going on:
With more and more reports of users being compromised – Yahoo is currently being sued over confidentiality issues which resulted in two Chinese bloggers being jailed, say reports – these fears are realistic.
But Google chairman Eric Schmidt is reported to have said US regulatory approval of the acquisition of DoubleClick, “will not be hindered by concerns over privacy”.
Says AP:
New York-based DoubleClick collects information about the Web surfing habits of consumers, an activity that has stirred complaints from privacy watchdogs and prompted antitrust regulators to take a closer look at Google’s proposed acquisition.
Google already retains information about search requests, which can reveal intimate details about a person’s health, finances, sexual preferences and other sensitive topics.
The company has already met with Yahoo Microsoft, “as well as a few European regulators to rally support for international privacy rules,” AP has Peter Fleischer, Google’s chief privacy officer, saying, continuing he plans to meet with Canada regulators later this month.
Adds the story:
All the major search engines have a financial motive to foster consumer trust because they collect personal data so they can customize online ads catering to the tastes and interests of each visitor. The more relevant that search engines can make ads, the more money they stand to make.
Facing pressure from European regulators, Google got the privacy ball rolling in a new direction earlier this year when it announced plans to regularly remove key pieces of personal information about the search requests stored in its computers.
Also See:
totally fail a six-month investigation – Google flunks major privacy study, June 11, 2007
Associated Press – Google Launches Global Privacy Crusade, September 14, 2007
Alan Herrell – - Clickthru Is Evil II, February 22, 2000
p2pnet – Google dismisses DoubleClick fears, May 31, 2007
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September 14th, 2007 at 9:38 am
Out of all the major net companies, google seems the most altruistic. Providing free online office applications, maps, mail, and other applications. As well as supporting open source through the summer of code. They can also be quite innovative at times.
I know the antipathy stems from the advertising repudiation of your site, but this company is one of the better ones out there. If you want to censure someone, do it to Microsoft, they are far more worth of your wrath.
September 14th, 2007 at 11:10 am
Doubleclick is not the story here, the warning by the privacy commisioner of canada over google streetview is. This is not atruistic, oh we all need better privacy standards. It’s blame canada for having too-strong legislation that interfers with their product; so lets argue for a international balance, knowing full well that any such consultation would bring in european/american privacy standards that dont cover things like street view at all, and quite frankly don’t hold a candle to canada’s privacy standards.
Google simply isn’t doing this because they want to protect privacy, they’re doing it because they want to reduce canada’s standards. Screw that.
September 14th, 2007 at 12:23 pm
“I know the antipathy stems from the advertising repudiation of your site”
Not at all. I say the same about Apple, Microsoft, and all the rest of them.
Cheers!
September 14th, 2007 at 12:51 pm
The privacy study mentioned was highly dubious, and the facts stated in the text contradicted the conclusions drawn in the assignment of scores.
When Yahoo, AOL, Microsoft, and Google were pressed by the US government to surrender millions of “anonymous” search queries in the name of “child safety”, Google was the only company to refuse and take the matter to court. Google won the case, meaning the other search companies had provided the data unnecessarily. All these companies scored higher than Google in this privacy study.