back to article Feds slurping your private data? But that's OUR job, says Google

Google has renewed calls for tougher safeguards to protect people's privacy online as the Feds come knocking for more emails and cloud-hosted files. The search giant is part of the Digital Due Process - a coalition including Facebook, Amazon, eBay and HP - that is trying to change the Electronic Communications Privacy Act to …

COMMENTS

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  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    At least the feds don't broadcast your data.

  2. ItsNotMe
    WTF?

    NEWS FLASH...

    Dateline...Mountain View, Calif

    Pot calls Kettle Black.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "Drummond said the Chocolate Factory will carry on with its "long-standing strict process" that decides whether or not to hand over any requested sensitive data, and has posted more information about the system."

    So that is a court order then. Would hate to think a polite letter would get access to anyone's info.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      AFAIK, the US Patriot Act is exactly that: permitting access without a court order. Oh, and anyone who identifies themselves as Homeland Security is apparently not required to show ID. Doesn't that make you feel snug and safe and secure already? Oh, and no, you cannot check later who used those powers. National security, you see.

      It's a bit like putting Gary Glitter and Jimmy Savile in charge of the local creche ("shudder").

      1. dogged
        Headmaster

        It's a bit like putting Gary Glitter and Jimmy Savile in charge of the local creche ("shudder").

        While I respect the sentiment, both of those two were said to be interested in teenaged girls (in Glitter's case, with evidence beyond "somebody said so"). It's no less repulsive but at least the creche is safe.

  4. John Lilburne

    ""We’re a law-abiding company, and we don’t want our services to be used in harmful ways."

    Rubbish.

    http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2011/05/google-to-pay-500-million-fine-for-rogue-pharma-ads/

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      The myth: We’re a law-abiding company, and we don’t want our services to be used in harmful ways.

      The reality: We're a law-abiding company if someone is watching and we cannot buy our way out, and we don't want anyone to benefit from us breaking the law when we damn well feel like it.

      That can really only be answered in one way:

      BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA HAHAHAHAAA gniffel hahaHAHAHAHAHA

  5. JaitcH
    Meh

    Pity Google does reeally push the issue by ...

    publishing full details of the documents used to demand the information unless explicitly denied by law or a judge.

    And Google can help by by deleting all records of a document when it is deleted by a user.

    My employer owns it's own mail server and all records are deleted two days after it has been read.

    1. Turtle

      @JaitcH Re: Pity Google does reeally push the issue by ...

      "My employer owns it's own mail server and all records are deleted two days after it has been read."

      I am pretty sure that such a course of action, for a business or corporation, is illegal in certain jurisdictions. Like the United States. (But I could be mistaken.)

    2. Alister
      Facepalm

      Re: Pity Google does reeally push the issue by ...

      My employer owns it's own mail server and all records are deleted two days after it has been read.

      That must make life interesting, when someone says

      "you know that email I sent you last week..."

      "No, what email?"

    3. deadlockvictim

      Re: Pity Google does reeally push the issue by ...

      JaitcH» My employer owns it's own mail server and all records are deleted two days after it has been read.

      Isn't that illegal? I have no idea which jurisdiction you are in, but I thought that it is a widespread requirement throughout the Western world to retain business e-mails for at least a year or so. I could be wrong, of course.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Pity Google does reeally push the issue by ...

        I thought that it is a widespread requirement throughout the Western world to retain business e-mails for at least a year or so. I could be wrong, of course.

        There is no explicit requirement to retain business email AFAIK, but there is one to retain all documentation germane to the financial dealings of your business and assets. Ergo, if you take and place email orders and have that contractually agreed, yes, you will need to retain them despite the fact that an email is not exactly hard to forge.

        The main reasons for that are financial: when the tax man cometh (or an inspection thereof) you need to be in a position to prove that you have not been create with tax (VAT, CGT etc etc). Retention duties are usually more than one year, btw.

  6. Primus Secundus Tertius
    Alert

    Fed(s) up with Google

    I thought Google and the Feds were in cahoots.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      @Google and the Feds were in cahoots

      Yes. Google pays protection money to Obama's campaign committee (and no doubt promises of fat consultancy contracts when Obama's term is up) and the Feds pay Google for data.

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Pirate

    One of the most portentous phrases you will ever see made about Google.....

    "The internet giant used Data Privacy Day"

    I tell you, that phrase can be deconstructed and commented about on SOOOOOOO many levels that it fairly boggles the mind.....

  8. Gannon (J.) Dick
    Holmes

    Easy, but "The Feds" won't do it.

    This is "The Weatherman's Dilemma". Pictures from sattelittes can tell you with absolute certainty that there is NOT a hurricane in the space between your house and the neighbors'. You'd think Weathermen (Feds) would be thrilled at the certainty. Not quite. The Weathermen need to be able to say for sure there is not a hurricane in your kitchen, don't they ? No actually they don't because major storms normally start outdoors.

    Enter Google.

    The Feds are already pointing a camera at your house!!!!!!!! Weathermen have already invaded your back yard!!!! All your lawn furniture are belong to us!!!!!!

    The simple solution is for the Weathermen (Feds) to say, "Yes, we look at, not under roofs and we never look at fewer than 100 roofs at a time so 1% of your lawn furniture are belong to us!!!! Some of it is quite ugly if you must know.". This is exactly what the US Census does with Industrial Surveys containing "confidential" information.

    The Weathermen will never land jobs at Google after Government Service unless they preserve the fiction that there might be hurricanes hiding under your roof or under your Cell Phone.

  9. MachDiamond Silver badge

    I will have a guess that Google, Yahoo, ISP's and especially Facebook are only aggrieved at having to hand the information over for free. All of them make their money by selling the same information and would be more than happy to SELL the information to the Man (at 50% over retail). The Man should be made to pay. In the old days (20 years ago) they had to pay spooks to ferret out the info and get judges to ok warrants on the most scanty amount of information. It's much easier now that they can just walk into an office, say that they are G men and walk out the door with gigs of dirt on their favorite celeb.

    I'll have to get some training from Kevin Mitnick on how to keep a straight face while playing the part of a Fed. It's soooo much easier if ID isn't required.

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