Google, the world’s No. 1 Internet search engine, suffered its latest setback this week when South Korean police launched a probe into its controversial Street View service, which the company hopes to launch soon. Police raided the company’s office in Seoul to question staffers about the information its fleet of camera and GPS-equipped cars had gathered when criss-crossing the country.
The concern is that the high-tech cars may have vacuumed up private data from unsecured wireless routers at homes and offices, something that Google has admitted to inadvertently doing. In an era of online information, many are saying that Google is going too far in its efforts to give consumers access to the world and has instead given the world the keys to your bedroom.
As one of the first countries to have panoramic views of its streets uploaded to Google Maps, Taiwan is no stranger to Street View or the criticisms of it. For months after the site first went online, pictures of the faces of pedestrians and motorists were clearly visible, whether they were on their way to a convenience store, betel-nut stand or love motel. Police could clearly be seen patrolling the streets and in some cases, Google cars strayed too close to sensitive military and government areas. Under a storm of criticism, the company introduced an algorithm to blur out people’s faces and license plate numbers, which temporarily dealt with some of the privacy concerns.
In May, however, Google admitted to sweeping up and then storing huge amounts of data from unencrypted Wi-Fi networks. This means that in every country where Google’s Street View cars have been busy, they have potentially had access to unencrypted e-mail, video downloads, Web browsing or other digital information that passes through wireless routers. The company says that UK data protection authorities have concluded that no “meaningful personal information” was collected. Nonetheless, Google faces investigations and lawsuits in dozens of countries where people fear that it may have deliberately collected private information. If successful, these could force the company to hand over hard drives full of personal information to the government, which would be far worse than having collected the information in the first place.
Take Hong Kong, for example. Street View cars collected data all over the territory and if Beijing, which has had stormy relations with the Internet giant, were to demand all information be handed over to authorities, that could be dangerous for human rights advocates, bloggers and democracy activists. Taiwan is another case in point, especially with the country’s slide back into authoritarianism as it draws closer to China. If Taiwan’s government demands access to Google’s data, it would have an unobstructed view into the most private corners of citizens’ lives.
Another problem is Google’s reason for collecting the data in the first place. Google planned to map the whereabouts of unencrypted Wi-Fi hotspots on its Google Maps service to let consumers know where they could go in any city to piggyback free wireless services. That sounds great, but it begs the question: What if criminals use those hotspots to gain access to personal information? Publishing the locations of unsecured wireless routers could lead to identity theft or worse. It’s like drawing a map to houses where the owner doesn’t lock the door and leaving it on a bulletin board in a bus station; it invites trouble.
Obviously, something needs to be done, but what? The company with the best technology is the source of the problem, so asking it to police itself is problematic, while asking government to police Google makes it likely that personal data will end up in the hands of officials. Luckily, Google’s ultimate responsibility is to its shareholders and if the media storm continues, maybe they will tell the company to shape up or ship out.
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