Google, NSA Partnership Raises Privacy Hackles
The revelation that Google Inc. is partnering with the National Security Agency to probe a widespread cyber attack has quickened the pulse of privacy advocates.
Continue reading...Google Does An About-Face On China Policy
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
San Francisco, CA — In a surprise announcement late Tuesday, Google Inc. said it may turn its back on the huge Chinese market after a sophisticated cyber attack on the e-mail accounts of human rights advocates in the Asian nation. Some have dubbed the country’s censorship efforts, which apply to Yahoo
Inc. and Microsoft Corp.’s search engines too, the "Great Firewall of
China." Users of Google.cn in China generally couldn’t look at images
of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, dig up information about Tibet’s
Dalai Lama or access the Web site for journalism watchdog organization
Reporters Without Borders, according to reports. "While Google
should never have agreed to censor search results in China in the first
place, it is doing the right thing by ending the practice now," said
John Simpson of Consumer Watchdog in Los Angeles. "The company should
be commended."
Smart Phone Apps Can Find You, Follow You
Sunday, January 3, 2010
The Center for Digital Democracy and U.S. Public Interest Research
Group filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission last January,
arguing that people should be asked for their consent before their
information can be collected and used for mobile advertising. The
Center for Digital Democracy and Consumer Watchdog have urged the FTC
to reject Google’s acquisition of AdMob, citing both competitive and
privacy concerns.
Press Release
Consumer Groups Want To Stop Google’s Purchase Of AdMob
Monday, December 28, 2009
San Francisco, CA — Two consumer groups called on the Federal Trade
Commission to block Google Inc.’s planned $750 million acquisition of
mobile advertising company AdMob, arguing the deal undermines
competition in what could become the critical billboard space of the
digital age. In a joint letter to the FTC on Monday, Consumer Watchdog and the
Center for Digital Democracy argued that combining the online search
giant with a company that describes itself as the "largest mobile ad
network globally," would harm consumers, advertisers and developers of
mobile applications.
Google To Unveil New Privacy Controls
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Google Inc. will announce a feature tomorrow that will give users more
control over their online privacy, according to a consumer advocate who
discussed the matter with the company. John Simpson of Consumer Watchdog hasn’t reviewed Google Dashboard yet,
because he refused to sign a nondisclosure agreement. But attorneys for
the Mountain View search giant informed him the new feature would be
unveiled on Thursday, he told The Chronicle.
Press Release
Microsoft, Yahoo Finally Sign Search Deal
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Microsoft and Yahoo clearly are bracing for regulatory scrutiny. The news release emphasized that the two companies will "continue to compete vigorously" in other areas, including e-mail, instant messaging and display advertising. It also stressed that the agreement restricts the sharing of search and other data.
Consumer Watchdog in Washington, D.C., called on the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission to probe the deal for potential antitrust violations and privacy concerns.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
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