As Google Hands Over Collected WiFi Data In Germany, France And Spain, Ireland Tells Google To Destroy It
from the mixed-messages dept
We recently covered how the data that Google collected via its Street View WiFi efforts was caught in this weird legal limbo, between privacy laws, data retention laws and rules about destroying evidence. However, it looks like that’s getting settled… but in very different ways in different countries. Somehow, Google has worked out a way to hand over the data in Germany, France and Spain… but over in Ireland, Google has been ordered to destroy the data. Not quite sure how this squares with the privacy laws in Germany, France and Spain… but hopefully we’ll find out that the data collected by this system was mostly meaningless and we can get over the hype surrounding this whole thing.
Filed Under: data collection, data retention, europe, france, germany, ireland, privacy, spain, wifi
Companies: google
Comments on “As Google Hands Over Collected WiFi Data In Germany, France And Spain, Ireland Tells Google To Destroy It”
WHERE is canada?
…..
Re: WHERE is canada?
north america
Re: WHERE is canada?
Where you live, IIRC, unfortunately for Canada.
Ireland has it right
Ireland has the right idea here. If this data is so private then it shouldn’t be handed to the government, it should be deleted with just enough oversight to make sure that there are no backups of it anywhere. If it’s not private then what’s the big deal? Don’t bother Google about it let them do as they please.
Now, I personally believe that they probably shouldn’t have been network sniffing even on open networks. However, I don’t believe that someone doing the equivalent of taking pictures through my window when I failed to close the drapes is doing anything illegal.
wake up call
In reality, this should serve as a wake up call to users to secure their networks if they are truly worried about people sniffing their data.
Re: wake up call
Who cares if people sniff your data. If you arent doing anything wrong you should not be worried.
/sarc
Re: Re: wake up call
Yeah, it’s not like I’m transmitting company confidential data through my wireless connection. Who would be dumb enough to do that?
The only thing I can think of, is maybe Google is treating each nations data based on the court of said nation? So Germany gets the Germany data, while the Ireland data is destroyed? I am sure that would raise complaints, but that seems like the only way to deal with the conflicting demands/laws.
Suss
Hmm Germany and the like want the Data? why do they want it? If it was illegally collected and a piracy concern, would not the government be just as guilty in receiving it? Did they ask Google to destroy their version when they hand the data over?
Ireland has the right idea, all these other governments I am extremely suspicious of why they want the data, rather then it been destroyed.