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Consumer Watchdog, one of the more harshest critics of Google’s dominance on the Internet, said it was “inappropriate” for the president to meet Schmidt in private while the search engine giant is being scrutinized by various U.S. government departments.
Press Release
WASHINGTON, DC — Consumer Watchdog today called on the Federal Trade Commission to create a “Do Not Track Me” mechanism to protect consumers’ online privacy and added that such a mechanism must have the force of law behind it.
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Consumer Watchdog, a group which has been highly critical of Google’s privacy practices, condemned the agreement to settle the issue through negotiations and called for congressional hearings on the subject.
Press Release
SANTA MONICA, CA — Consumer Watchdog today called on Google to end the secrecy surrounding its lobbying efforts in Washington after the Internet giant refused to release an 89-page presentation it is showing to policymakers and regulators in the nation’s capital. The call came as the Internet giant’s lobbying spending soared to $5.2 million in 2010 from $4.03 million in 2009.
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Frequent Google critic Consumer Watchdog blasted the announcement and repeated its call for outgoing Google CEO Eric Schmidt to explain the incident to lawmakers. “The details of the biggest privacy breach in history shouldn’t be settled in secret,” said John Simpson, director of Consumer Watchdog’s Inside Google Project. “This makes it clear why Google CEO Eric Schmidt needs to testify under oath before Congress about Wi-Spy.”
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Consumer Watchdog decried today’s agreement between Google and the state. “The details of the biggest privacy breach in history shouldn’t be settled in secret,” said John M. Simpson, director of Consumer Watchdog’s Inside Google Project. “This makes it clear why Google CEO Eric Schmidt needs to testify under oath before Congress about Wi-Spy.”
Press Release
SANTA MONICA, CA — Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen’s deal with Google announced today makes it clear that Congressional hearings will be necessary if the American public is to understand fully what happened in the Wi-Spy scandal, Consumer Watchdog said.
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A consumer advocacy group has hired a van to drive around the streets of Washington D.C. playing an animated cartoon lampooning Google’s outgoing CEO Eric Schmidt for previous statements he’s made concerning Internet privacy.
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Consumer Watchdog receives no funding from Microsoft or any other competitor of Google, John Simpson, consumer advocate with the group, told PC World. “We don’t have any relationship with Microsoft at all … We don’t take any of their money,” he said. Simpson said the group has decided to focus on Google’s privacy practices because the company’s services serve as a gateway to the Internet for many people. If the group can push Google, “without a doubt the dominant Internet company,” to change its privacy practices, other companies will follow suit, he said.
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As Eric Schmidt plans his transition from Google’s chief executive into a role has a greater focus on government outreach, ardent Google critic and privacy advocate Consumer Watchdog has found a not-so-friendly way to welcome him to Washington.
