Google Watch points out a job posting on the Google site for “Privacy Policy Counsel” based in Washington, DC. Given that Google is under much more pressure and scrutiny from the US Department of Justice these days, this kind of hire makes sense. Google is recognizing that it’s got to build direct relationships with legislators […]
This is now a familiar story: European privacy concerns and complaints against Google Street View. From angry mobs to European regulators, Google is confronting many more objections as it tries to visually map The Continent than it did in the US. This installment involves German “data protection regulators” in Hamburg who object to the way […]
Today is judgment day for the four Google executives charged by Italian prosecutors in June 2008. The New York Times blog reports a trial against them involving criminal charges of defamation and privacy violation begins this week in Milan. Like we reported in the past, the case is about a video uploaded to YouTube where […]
Responding to European demands that the major search engines cut the length of time they store records of web searches, Microsoft said on Monday it would only store that data for six months as long as Google and Yahoo follow suit. The New York Times reports, however, that neither Google nor Yahoo are ready to […]
The Google LatLong Blog announced the expansion of imagery for Google StreetView to include Japan and Australia. The post also said that images have been released for 30 new US cities, including New Orleans. Europe is on the way but privacy hurdles need to be cleared first. Google recently introduced StreetView images for the Tour […]
Privacy issues are back with a vengeance. Everywhere you look now NGOs, legal experts, and government officials are raising questions about this or that online or ad initiative and privacy. The most recent privacy debacle was the Viacom-YouTube ruling, which is being circumvented by cooperation between the parties. Now, as Google formally launches StreetView images […]
“We didn’t get to paid search first, and it turns out that’s the best part of the market,” Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer told Washington Post Editors as part of a meeting that explored a range of topics. Among other things, Ballmer discussed Microsoft’s strategy and mission statement, why it aspires to be competitive in search, […]
Writing the Search Biz column is challenging because of the diverse group of stories that get collected every day. Today there’s an unusually large number; however, there are basically three broad themes: Google and the company’s legal challenges, Yahoo’s Jekyll and Hyde positions on China and human rights, and the revolving personnel door at both […]
Group Sues Justice for Google Contacts from Washington Post reports that the Electronic Frontier Foundation filed suit against a former Googler. The EFF want to know what was said between Google and Jane Horvath, a former US Justice Department privacy lawyer who now works for Google. The suit was filed in U. S. District Court […]
Much of the discussion and debate in the U.S. over Google’s proposed acquisition of DoubleClick was about the impact of the deal on consumer privacy, even though that wasn’t technically part of the anti-trust analysis before the FTC. Accordingly, the FTC approved the acquisition with one commissioner dissenting largely on privacy grounds. Now, Pamela Jones […]
According to Boston.com, Google’s Street View images are rolling out to more US cities today, including Boston, Providence, Dallas, Fort Worth, Indianapolis, Detroit, Minneapolis, and St. Paul. Google Operating System counts the total number of US cities with StreetView now as 23. StreetView is also actively in development in Canada, Europe, and Australia.
Google’s StreetView program has been shadowed by privacy concerns arising from the capture of license plate numbers, people’s faces, and other potentially embarrassing images. To address these issues, Google set up a system where users could request images be removed. However arguably the embarrassment or damage has already been done by that point. Now, as […]
Google Maps is global, so why not Google StreetView as well? A London expansion is suggested by this image of one of the vehicles that takes the 360 degree street images. (Google has done some of the photography itself, but also uses partner Immersive Media in the U.S.). StreetView image collection is apparently underway in […]
Although it’s not yet available in Canada, Canada’s privacy commissioner has raised concerns preemptively that Google’s Street View photography could violate the Canadian Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act of 2004. This article is part of Local Search Week here at Search Engine Land, a special look at local search marketing issues in the […]
A US district court judge has ruled that it is unconstitutional for the US government to send secret letters demanding search records from search engines. A provision of the Patriot Act has allowed for such letters to be sent to search engines, ISPs and others by the Federal Bureau Of Investigation — and made it […]
Google loses Gmail trademark case in Germany from News.com reports that Google has lost the Gmail trademark case in a German appellate court. Google will not be allowed to use Gmail in Germany, like they can’t in the United Kingdom and Switzerland. Google Threatens to Close German Gmail Due to Local Law from Google Blogoscoped […]
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web:
Google may be violating EU privacy laws on user search data from Bloomberg reports that the European Union has finally sent Google an expected letter raising concerns over Google’s data retention policies.
Google might be receiving a letter from the European Union’s Article 29 Data Protection Working Party relating to the company’s data retention policies. What’s in the letter — if there are concerns, requests, demands — is unknown at this point. No one yet seems to have a copy of the actual letter, not even Google.