Posted: 10/24/2010 7:48:11 AM EDT
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Google admits copying computer data
Internet search engine Google has admitted copying household computer passwords and emails, it has been revealed. The company collected the information from wireless networks when its vehicles drove around residential streets taking photographs for its worldwide Street View product, which was launched in 2008. Linky above |
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Google admits copying computer data Internet search engine Google has admitted copying household computer passwords and emails, it has been revealed. The company collected the information from wireless networks when its vehicles drove around residential streets taking photographs for its worldwide Street View product, which was launched in 2008. Linky above That's why only hard wired for me. Not that hard wired couldn't be breached but it is tougher IIRC. It was a bit** to hard wire all the way upstairs but I'm glad I did it. |
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Quoted: While it seems accidental, I'm still curious - why bother packet sniffing while continuously mobile? What purpose could that possibly serve? Any data collected will be incomplete, and things like passwords and emails will be completely incidental. Google needs data. Any kind of data. All datas. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Google admits copying computer data Internet search engine Google has admitted copying household computer passwords and emails, it has been revealed. The company collected the information from wireless networks when its vehicles drove around residential streets taking photographs for its worldwide Street View product, which was launched in 2008. Linky above That's why only hard wired for me. Not that hard wired couldn't be breached but it is tougher IIRC. It was a bit** to hard wire all the way upstairs but I'm glad I did it. If you encrypted the traffic (like you should), you wouldn't have been affected by this. |
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non broadcasting SSID + WPA 2 means they won't get much from me. Also, if you're concerned with Google being the corporate big brother, you may want to look into a firefox addon called google sharing. You can learn more about it at thoughtcrime.org. Moxie Marlinspike is one smart mofo. I've run through my neighborhood with netstumbler running to find that at least 1/3 of the wireless networks picked up have the default SSID and are unencrypted. Dollars to donuts they still have the default router password set too.
In short, this is yet another reason I don't use google services beyond the search engine. |
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Google admits copying computer data Internet search engine Google has admitted copying household computer passwords and emails, it has been revealed. The company collected the information from wireless networks when its vehicles drove around residential streets taking photographs for its worldwide Street View product, which was launched in 2008. Linky above That's why only hard wired for me. Not that hard wired couldn't be breached but it is tougher IIRC. It was a bit** to hard wire all the way upstairs but I'm glad I did it. If you encrypted the traffic (like you should), you wouldn't have been affected by this. I've always encrypted my conections. I work from home a lot so tend to have several layers of encryption. What intrigues me is why, when Google was basically doing a photographic mapping exercise, them managed to "accidentally" record the personal information of some people. I feel that deserves a little more attention, and Google should be held accountable for their actions. |
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While it seems accidental, I'm still curious - why bother packet sniffing while continuously mobile? What purpose could that possibly serve? Any data collected will be incomplete, and things like passwords and emails will be completely incidental. this. not to mentin the whle "why". if they were looking fr somethign specific they'd be getting miliions of tb of garbage data for ne useful hit.. why bother with that. IMHO this type of things need a real LE investigation of privacy violations. |
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While it seems accidental, I'm still curious - why bother packet sniffing while continuously mobile? What purpose could that possibly serve? Any data collected will be incomplete, and things like passwords and emails will be completely incidental. this. not to mentin the whle "why". if they were looking fr somethign specific they'd be getting miliions of tb of garbage data for ne useful hit.. why bother with that. IMHO this type of things need a real LE investigation of privacy violations. Here here... |
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Google admits copying computer data Internet search engine Google has admitted copying household computer passwords and emails, it has been revealed. The company collected the information from wireless networks when its vehicles drove around residential streets taking photographs for its worldwide Street View product, which was launched in 2008. Linky above That's why only hard wired for me. Not that hard wired couldn't be breached but it is tougher IIRC. It was a bit** to hard wire all the way upstairs but I'm glad I did it. If you encrypted the traffic (like you should), you wouldn't have been affected by this. Good point. |
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non broadcasting SSID + WPA 2 means they won't get much from me. Also, if you're concerned with Google being the corporate big brother, you may want to look into a firefox addon called google sharing. You can learn more about it at thoughtcrime.org. Moxie Marlinspike is one smart mofo. I've run through my neighborhood with netstumbler running to find that at least 1/3 of the wireless networks picked up have the default SSID and are unencrypted. Dollars to donuts they still have the default router password set too. In short, this is yet another reason I don't use google services beyond the search engine. FTR, not broadcasting your SSID won't stop a wardriver from finding your network. They just won't know the name of it. 
But yes, go WPA2 or go home. |
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Google admits copying computer data Internet search engine Google has admitted copying household computer passwords and emails, it has been revealed. The company collected the information from wireless networks when its vehicles drove around residential streets taking photographs for its worldwide Street View product, which was launched in 2008. Linky above That's why only hard wired for me. Not that hard wired couldn't be breached but it is tougher IIRC. It was a bit** to hard wire all the way upstairs but I'm glad I did it. If you encrypted the traffic (like you should), you wouldn't have been affected by this. I've always encrypted my conections. I work from home a lot so tend to have several layers of encryption. What intrigues me is why, when Google was basically doing a photographic mapping exercise, them managed to "accidentally" record the personal information of some people. I feel that deserves a little more attention, and Google should be held accountable for their actions. What should they be held accountable for? If I stand in my yard and scream my social security number should there be a consequence if you write it down? If you don't want the world to hear your private information, don't broadcast it to the world. IMHO this type of things need a real LE investigation of privacy violations.
Same goes. You're the one broadcasting it, what expectation of privacy should you have. Its like standing in the front yard naked and yelling at people not to look. |
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While it seems accidental, I'm still curious - why bother packet sniffing while continuously mobile? What purpose could that possibly serve? Any data collected will be incomplete, and things like passwords and emails will be completely incidental. That's the question I have. Why was the equipment on board? |
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While it seems accidental, I'm still curious - why bother packet sniffing while continuously mobile? What purpose could that possibly serve? Any data collected will be incomplete, and things like passwords and emails will be completely incidental. That's the question I have. Why was the equipment on board? Google uses access point location data to help determine a user's location. I wouldn't be surprised if they do or will in the future off a map of nearby open AP's too. Now why they were recording anything other gps cord, ap name, and mac address is beyond me. |
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While it seems accidental, I'm still curious - why bother packet sniffing while continuously mobile? What purpose could that possibly serve? Any data collected will be incomplete, and things like passwords and emails will be completely incidental. Because they want to do this. The Geolocation API defines a high-level interface to location information associated only with the device hosting the implementation, such as latitude and longitude. The API itself is agnostic of the underlying location information sources. Common sources of location information include Global Positioning System (GPS) and location inferred from network signals such as IP address, RFID, WiFi and Bluetooth MAC addresses, and GSM/CDMA cell IDs, as well as user input. No guarantee is given that the API returns the device's actual location.
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While it seems accidental, I'm still curious - why bother packet sniffing while continuously mobile? What purpose could that possibly serve? Any data collected will be incomplete, and things like passwords and emails will be completely incidental. Google needs data. Any kind of data. All datas. I picture Google taking a tangible and sentient form.. absorbing the data into its gargantuan mass, ever craving, always devouring. I come across unsecure networks all the time. Lock your shit up, people! |
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Quoted: It does install the Google Update service which runs as SYSTEM so it could read and report on anything on your computer.this is yet another reason I don't use google services beyond the search engine. graph-x, Do you consider installing and running Google Earth on one's computer to constitute a security risk? Thanks, I'd appreciate your opinion on this. Same exact thing with Steam. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: While it seems accidental, I'm still curious - why bother packet sniffing while continuously mobile? What purpose could that possibly serve? Any data collected will be incomplete, and things like passwords and emails will be completely incidental. Google needs data. Any kind of data. All datas. I picture Google taking a tangible and sentient form.. absorbing the data into its gargantuan mass, ever craving, always devouring. I come across unsecure networks all the time. Lock your shit up, people! The Google being cannot be stopped. Using information gathered from various Russian websites and government networks, it will have the ability to harvest data from the minds of humans. Your passwords wouldn't be safe if it touched you with it's noodly megabyte-y appendages. |
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Google has increasingly targeted user data and has mined your search engine results and click-throughs, Gmail content and anything else they can get their hooks into. This wireless sniffing is actually their second time being caught at this. Then they apologize, swear they won't do it again and then are caught doing it once again. Lather, repeat.
Google street view is simply a multimedia sniffing, information gathering foray for Google. Google is far, far more invasive and effective at being invasive than the government will ever be. |
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The Google being cannot be stopped. Using information gathered from various Russian websites and government networks, it will have the ability to harvest data from the minds of humans. Your passwords wouldn't be safe if it touched you with it's noodly megabyte-y appendages. Ahhh, I can see it now. The Google-beast's rough skin glistened in tempo with the flash of lightning in the night sky. The hulking mass lunged forward with a singular purpose, ignoring any hapless being that was unfortunate enough to find itself in the beast's path. It would feast on the succulent morsels of data on this night. |
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The Google being cannot be stopped. Using information gathered from various Russian websites and government networks, it will have the ability to harvest data from the minds of humans. Your passwords wouldn't be safe if it touched you with it's noodly megabyte-y appendages. Ahhh, I can see it now. The Google-beast's rough skin glistened in tempo with the flash of lightning in the night sky. The hulking mass lunged forward with a singular purpose, ignoring any hapless being that was unfortunate enough to find itself in the beast's path. It would feast on the succulent morsels of data on this night. You should leave here at once. You talent is wasted in GD 
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I guess it all depends on how much tin foil is in your hat really. Google has also admitted to recording IP geo-location information, so it's up to you. As far as invasion of privacy, google does it better than anyone else. As far as security... meh, nothing is 100% secure. They do make efforts to shore up applications and services better than most.
As far as the non-broadcasting SSID, I'm well aware that wardriving will still turn up my AP, but it's just another layer right? Defense in-depth. |
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"Dont be Evil*"-Google *we reserve the right to define, refine, and redefine "evil" at any time we want to. Oh, they went to the same classes as BATFE. "Well, yesterday this wasn't a receiver, but we want to put you in jail so today it is." Or... "Yes sir, we know we approved your design over 2 years ago, but today, we decided that it really is a machine gun and not a part." 
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Quoted: Quoted: I told you guys that google is not our friend. And yet according to GD Android is God's own gift to the mobile OS market and anyone who buys an iPhone or iPad is just an Apple cultist drinking the Steve Jobs Flavorade. Well, that'd be true. Android IS god's gift to the mobile market. iOS isn't even comparable to Android in flexibility or scalability. |
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Google admits copying computer data Internet search engine Google has admitted copying household computer passwords and emails, it has been revealed. The company collected the information from wireless networks when its vehicles drove around residential streets taking photographs for its worldwide Street View product, which was launched in 2008. Linky above That's why only hard wired for me. Not that hard wired couldn't be breached but it is tougher IIRC. It was a bit** to hard wire all the way upstairs but I'm glad I did it. If you encrypted the traffic (like you should), you wouldn't have been affected by this. I have no encryption, but no wireless, either. They can sniff all they want, but that aren't getting anything off my hardwired network. (installed for speed purposes, not really for security purposes) |
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Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I told you guys that google is not our friend. And yet according to GD Android is God's own gift to the mobile OS market and anyone who buys an iPhone or iPad is just an Apple cultist drinking the Steve Jobs Flavorade. Well, that'd be true. Android IS god's gift to the mobile market. iOS isn't even comparable to Android in flexibility or scalability. Google's history of abusing its users' privacy may instead make it a Faustian bargain. |
