Protecting Privacy

By Brad

Yesterday, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) announced he was introducing an online privacy bill aimed at giving Internet users more control over how their data is collected and used. From the Washington Post:

The legislative proposals add momentum to a push by consumer groups to create stronger federal rules for how companies such as Facebook, Apple, Amazon and Google can track user activity and place ads based on that information. Facebook faced criticism for creating complex changes to its privacy polices late last year that made some information more available to the public. Apple and AT&T were criticized for a data breach that revealed the network identities of its iPad users. Google said it accidentally snooped on residential Wi-Fi networks around the world as it collected technical information for location-based applications.

“Our ability to control what information is collected, used and disclosed about us is central to how we want the world to view us, and that, in turn, affects our ability to seek out opportunity in both social and economic spheres,” Kerry said in a statement. “But currently, there is widespread confusion among our constituents and colleagues about what power we have over those practices.”

In other privacy news,  it has been revealed that the profile pages — including data such as addresses, phone numbers, and dates of birth — for more than 100 million Facebook users has appeared on an Internet file-sharing site. While the release of the data doesn’t break any laws, since its all publicly available, it highlights the increasing need for user vigilance when posting information online.

Big in Japan

By Brad

Earlier this week, search giants Google and Yahoo! announced they would be joining forces in Japan. As you’d expect, this didn’t sit well with Microsoft, whose Bing search engine has slowly been building a user base. Reports The Hill:

“Today Google accounts for about 51 percent of paid search advertising in Japan. Yahoo Japan accounts for 47 percent. Their combined share of natural search results is almost as high,” [Microsoft’s Dave Heiner] said.

Heiner raised concerns about potential anticompetitive repercussions of the deal. He pointed to how Google ranks its search listings.

Heiner warned that “if Google is permitted to proceed with its plan … Google alone would decide what consumers in Japan will find, or not find, on the Web.”

He also raised the specter of user privacy.

He continued, “And Google will obtain massive amounts of data regarding the search history and websites visited by every consumer, business and government agency that conducts web searches.”

Given all the chatter recently about the need for “search neutrality,” this move will surely add more fuel to the fire.

Hanging on in China

By Brad

The Wall Street Journal reports that Google, which has been scuffling with the government of China lately, had its licensed renewed by the government last Friday. The renewal allows the search giant to keep its Chinese web address, but the government can still revoke it whenever it sees fit.

Investigating Google

By Brad

Yesterday, news broke that as part of an investigation into Google’s StreetView wi-fi breach, a French security firm discovered private email passwords among the data collected. Now, Computer World reports, at least 30 states — led by Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal — may soon launch a joint investigation into the company’s conduct here in America:

The joint investigation will ask Google for additional information about its snatching of data from personal and business Wi-Fi networks using the company’s Street View vehicles, which have cruised U.S. streets and roads since 2007 as part of an effort to map wireless hot spots for mobile location purposes.

Calling the practice “deeply disturbing,” Blumenthal also said the inquiry will look into possible violations of state laws, and whether state and federal privacy laws need to be strengthened.

Passwords Unprotected

By Brad

The BBC reports that Google’s breach of privacy via its Street View program may have, in fact, been much worse than previously reported:

Google scooped up sensitive data such as passwords when putting together its Street View service, suggests an early look at the information.

The examination was carried out by French data protection agency CNIL as it decides whether to prosecute the search firm for gathering the data.

The data was gathered as Google logged wi-fi hotspots to help it develop location-based services.

Previously, Google said there was “no harm, no foul” in collecting the data.

With investigations already underway in Germany, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Italy and Canada, this latest revelation — if true — could quickly turn into a major headache for Google. Stay tuned…

Google Hands Over the Data

By Brad

The fallout from Google’s admittance that it had inadvertently been capturing people’s private data as part of its StreetView program continues. As the Wall Street Journal reports, the company — which had previously balked at releasing the captured data to European regulators for investigation — will hand over the data after all:

The decision, confirmed by a Google spokeswoman, represents the company’s latest effort to mollify governments that were angered by the revelation in May that Google’s Street View services, which use camera-equipped vehicles to take street images and mark the location of Wi-Fi networks, for years had gathered data transmitted over unsecured networks used by residents and businesses.
The company will first hand data over to German, French and Spanish authorities.

The Journal goes on to report that some of the countries involved are contemplating criminal investigations into the privacy breach. Stay tuned…

State of Emergency

By Brad

Cybersecurity is getting a lot of attention these days, with a number of bills making the rounds on Capitol Hill to ensure America’s digital infrastructure remains operative during an emergency. Wired takes a look at the most recent one, sponsored by Sen. Joe Lieberman and Sen. Susan Collins:

Lieberman and Collins’ solution is one of the more far-reaching proposals. In the Senators’ draft bill, “the President may issue a declaration of an imminent cyber threat to covered critical infrastructure.” Once such a declaration is made, the director of a DHS National Center for Cybersecurity and Communications is supposed to “develop and coordinate emergency measures or actions necessary to preserve the reliable operation, and mitigate or remediate the consequences of the potential disruption, of covered critical infrastructure.”

“The owner or operator of covered critical infrastructure shall comply with any emergency measure or action developed by the Director,” the bill adds.

As Wired points out, the President will only be able issue a declaration if the threat will “do massive harm,” meaning breaches January’s hacking of Google and Adobe wouldn’t qualify.

The Purchase Gets the Nod

By Brad

After months of waiting, Google’s $750 million purchase of online advertising company AdMob has been unanimously approved by the FTC. And as it turns out, it was the entry into the online ad market by one of Google’s chief competitors that appears to have swayed the vote. From the FTC statement about the approval:

In a statement issued today, the Commission said that although the combination of the two leading mobile advertising networks raised serious antitrust issues, the agency’s concerns ultimately were overshadowed by recent developments in the market, most notably a move by Apple Computer Inc. – the maker of the iPhone – to launch its own, competing mobile ad network. In addition, a number of firms appear to be developing or acquiring smartphone platforms to better compete against Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android, and these firms would have a strong incentive to facilitate competition among mobile advertising networks.

“As a result of Apple’s entry (into the market), AdMob’s success to date on the iPhone platform is unlikely to be an accurate predictor of AdMob’s competitive significance going forward, whether AdMob is owned by Google or not,” the Commission’s statement explains.

Privacy Problems

By Brad

The fallout from Google admitting it had inadvertently been capturing snippets private data through its StreetView program continues to grow. Already, investigations have been launched in Germany, Italy, and France. And on Wednesday, the Washington Post reports, Reps. Edward Markey and Joe Barton sent a letter to the FTC urging them to investigate the matter. Later that same day, a Washington D.C. Council Member also called for an investigation into the matter, calling Google’s privacy breach “big brother-like.”

All in all, Google’s error isn’t that big of a deal. But that’s not stopping two people who left their WiFi networks open from filing a lawsuit against the company. At Techdirt, Mike Masnick calls out the litigants:

While there’s nothing illegal about setting up an open WiFi network—and, in fact, it’s often a very sensible thing to do—if you’re using an open WiFi network, it is your responsibility to recognize that it is open and any unencrypted data you send over that network can be seen by anyone else on the same access point.

This is clearly nothing more than a money grab by some people, and hopefully the courts toss it out quickly, though I imagine there will be more lawsuits like this one.

From Gmail to a Reprimand

By Bruce

techPresident reports that Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer Andrew McLaughlin was recently reprimanded over using his private Gmail address to talk to people at Google:

McLaughlin was cited for two kinds of actions: using a personal email account for some professional email exchanges and for violating restrictions on contacts with Google, his former employer. Most notable among the latter were a pair of conversations with the Director of U.S. Public Policy for Google about mobilizing Google’s resources to respond to negative press mentions. Those breaches, according to a memo by OSTP Director John Holdren, “implicated” the Federal Records Act and the President’s Ethics Pledge signed by McLaughlin upon his employment as an Obama administration point person on innovation and Internet policy, within the White House Office of Technology and Science Policy.

The Hill has more:

In one exchange, [Google’s Director of U.S. Public Policy Andrew] Davidson alerts McLaughlin to possible fallout from his remarks on net neutrality. Later, the company offers to go to bat for McLaughlin, promising to “tee up” the Open Internet Coalition—of which Google is a chief member—to defend the Web chief’s remarks.

The conversation ends when Davidson writes: “Update on this—haven’t seen anything run yet. We and a few OIC folks talked with reporters. It’s possible that killed it, which is probably driving [AT&T] crazy.”

A Privacy Mess

By Brad

In the wake of Google’s admission last Friday that its StreetView program had been accidently collecting information from private WiFi networks, the Federal Trade Commission is reportedly opening an investigation into the matter.

Meanwhile, Germany’s consumer protection minister had some strong words for the company. From the Huffington Post:

Minister Ilse Aigner said the “alarming incident” showed that Google still lacks an understanding of the need for privacy.

“According to the information available to us so far, Google has for years penetrated private networks, apparently illegally,” her office said in a statement Saturday.

The ministry also accuses Google of withholding information requested by German regulators.

Speaking of Privacy…

By Brad

Last Friday Google announced that after an internal investigation, it was discovered that the company’s StreetView project had been collecting personal WiFi data. From the official Google Blog:

Nine days ago the data protection authority (DPA) in Hamburg, Germany asked to audit the WiFi data that our Street View cars collect for use in location-based products like Google Maps for mobile, which enables people to find local restaurants or get directions. His request prompted us to re-examine everything we have been collecting, and during our review we discovered that a statement made in a blog post on April 27 was incorrect.

In that blog post, and in a technical note sent to data protection authorities the same day, we said that while Google did collect publicly broadcast SSID information (the WiFi network name) and MAC addresses (the unique number given to a device like a WiFi router) using Street View cars, we did not collect payload data (information sent over the network). But it’s now clear that we have been mistakenly collecting samples of payload data from open (i.e. non-password-protected) WiFi networks, even though we never used that data in any Google products.

Taken alone, this error isn’t that big of a deal. But given the privacy concerns that continually dog Google, it’s just more ammunition for privacy rights groups.

A Decision From the FTC

By Brad

Speaking of online advertising, The Hill is reporting that the Federal Trade Commission’s decision over Google’s proposed purchase of AdMob — a $750 million dollar deal — could be coming by the end of this week.

The Tablet Wars

By Brad

With over a million units sold already, Apple’s iPad is reinvigorating the so-called tablet PC market. And now, as the Wall Street Journal reports, Google is looking to get in on the action with a tablet computer of their own:

Verizon Wireless is working with Google Inc. on a tablet computer, the carrier’s chief executive, Lowell McAdam, said Tuesday, as the company endeavors to catch up with iPad host AT&T Inc. in devices that connect to wireless networks.

The work is part of a deepening relationship between the largest U.S. wireless carrier by subscribers and Google, which has carved out a space in mobile devices with its Android operating system. Verizon Wireless last year heavily promoted the Motorola Droid, which runs Google’s software.

“What do we think the next big wave of opportunities are?” Mr. McAdam said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal. “We’re working on tablets together, for example. We’re looking at all the things Google has in its archives that we could put on a tablet to make it a great experience.”

Replies from Heavy Hitters

By Brad

The Washington Post highlights Open Internet NPRM replies from two heavy hitters. First up, Microsoft:

In its filing to the FCC earlier this week, the software giant said that as long as they’re competitive and don’t harm consumers, broadband access providers should be able to offer enhanced and tiered services. An example would be Comcast offering streaming Netflix videos as a premium service.

“This approach would afford access providers the necessary flexibility to serve a wide range of entities, from multinational enterprises, to small businesses, to residential customers, so long as they do so in a manner that is not anticompetitive or harmful to consumers,” Microsoft’s Washington counsel wrote in the filing.

While Microsoft suggested the FCC to move forward carefully when it comes to net neutrality, Google’s reply to the FCC encourages the commission to make a major move:

“It would be unwise for the Commission simply to continue relying solely or primarily on its Title I authority to adopt the proposed broadband openness rules,” Google wrote in its comments. “Instead, the FCC should consider a number of options, including pursuing a decision grounded in whole or in part on its unquestioned authority under existing statutory titles, including Title II.”

So far, Chairman Genachowski has remained quiet about the idea of reclassifying broadband as a Title II service, even as he faces major heat from advocacy groups over the issue.

Rumor of the Day

By Brad

According to the London Evening Standard, Apple wants to buy ARM Holdings. Why would this be a big deal? TechCrunch provides an answer:

[I]f they did this, it would mean that almost all of Apple’s main competitors would likely have to find new chips to power their devices. While ARM doesn’t make the chips itself, it licenses out its technology to others who make the chips that go into Nokia, Sony, Samsung, HTC, and many, many other phones. This includes the iPhone and even the iPad, whose custom A4 chip is still based on ARM architecture. This also, obviously, includes phones that run Google’s Android software.

In other words, the already explosive smart phone market would suddenly be thrown into chaos. Stay tuned…

Going After Google

By Brad

When it comes to the increasingly lucrative realm of online advertising, there’s little doubt that Google dominates. And as the San Francisco Chronicle reports, that domination isn’t sitting well with a consumer group:

Consumer Watchdog, the Santa Monica group that’s proving a perpetual thorn in the side of Google Inc., plans to call on the Justice Department to launch an antitrust action against the search giant and seek remedies including a possible break up.

The consumer organization, which secured grants from the Rose Foundation of Oakland specifically to investigate Google’s privacy practices, plans to make the announcement at a press conference titled “The Antitrust Case Against Google” in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday.

“We, as an organization, have concluded that there’s enough evidence on the table to warrant this, to go beyond the reactive steps that the regulatory agencies have followed up until now,” said John Simpson of Consumer Watchdog.

That’s not the only headache headed for the online giant. Yesterday, officials from 10 countries — including Germany, Canada, and France — sent a letter to Google expressing concerns over the company’s privacy efforts, specifically the botched February launch of Google Buzz, their entry into microblogging. From the letter (PDF):

[W]e are increasingly concerned that, too often, the privacy rights of the world’s citizens are being forgotten as Google rolls out new technological applications. We were disturbed by your recent rollout of the Google Buzz social networking application, which betrayed a disappointing disregard for fundamental privacy norms and laws. Moreover, this was not the first time you have failed to take adequate account of privacy considerations when launching new services.

The privacy problems associated with your initial global rollout of Google Buzz on February 9, 2010 were serious and ought to have been readily apparent to you.

The Google mantra has always been “Don’t be evil.” But as with any company, the bigger you are the more you are in the crosshairs. So it shouldn’t be a surprise that, Google has increased its federal lobbying spending by 57% in the first quarter of this year alone.

News on the March

By Brad

It’s no secret that the news industry is struggling in the digital age, but as Politico reports, at least one heavy hitter believes the industry will not only survive, but thrive:

The chief executive of Google has a message for the staggering newspaper industry: Things will get better.

And Google CEO Eric Schmidt told a group of newspaper executives Sunday evening that his growing company will be an integral part of those changes.

Newspapers will make money once again, he said, but it will be from online advertisements and an altered subscription model. Schmidt said his firm is working on new ways to tailor advertisements and content for consumers, based on what stories they read.

“We have a business model problem, we don’t have a news problem,” Schmidt said.

Online Ad Wars

By Brad

Via Ars Technica, Google’s acquisition of online advertising company AdMob is not sitting well with the Federal Trade Commission:

According to people “familiar with the matter” speaking to the Wall Street Journal, the FTC has sent letters asking AdMob’s competitors to testify about the impact of the purchase and has briefed members of Congress on its concerns. The Commission has also put together a litigation team “to prepare for a possible effort to block the deal,” though a final decision has not yet been made.

At issue is Google’s dominance in the online advertising market. But as All Things Digital reports, a rumored entry into online advertising by a Google rival may help soothe things over with the FTC:

Apple is likely to introduce its mobile ad platform Thursday at its iPhone developer event, say sources familiar with the company’s plans. Expect to hear a loud cheer from Google, Apple’s former ally and current competitor.

Why would Google applaud the entrance of a new advertising rival? Because Google is trying to convince federal regulators that it has advertising rivals so that it can proceed with its $750 million purchase of AdMob. That deal is being held up for review by the Federal Trade Commission, and there have been consistent murmurs from Washington that the purchase could be in jeopardy.

Buzz Kill

By Brad

The recent launch of Google Buzz — the online giant’s attempt to compete with Twitter — raised a number of privacy concerns. Now, as Ars Technica reports, those concerns have reached Congress:

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) condemned Google’s mismanagement of the service’s rollout and lack of privacy safeguards. EPIC filed a complaint with the FTC, calling for the organization to review the matter. A bipartisan group of congressmen are the latest to join the chorus. In an open letter addressed to FTC chairman Jon Leibowitz, eleven members of the US House of Representatives called for an investigation of Buzz and closer scrutiny of Google’s pending acquisition of mobile advertising company AdMob.

“We are writing to express our concern over claims that Google’s ‘Google Buzz’ social networking tool breaches online consumer privacy and trust. Due to the high number of individuals whose online privacy is affected by tools like this—either directly or indirectly—we feel that these claims warrant the Commission’s review of Google’s public disclosure of personal information of consumers through Google Buzz,” the letter says.