google = cia ???
let me know when they start wire tapping, or enter the telco bizz
If you were getting worried that a full two weeks had passed without Google acquiring yet another company, you can now rest easy. Today, the lord of the acquisitions bagged ImageAmerica - a company that takes aerial photographs with its own airplanes and high-res cameras - as it looks to beef up imagery on its Google Earth and …
With all the information Google has on you (if you use them as your search engine, let their advertising cookies take up residence on your system, use their email etc services, and so on), they probably don't see a need for wire tapping. There's a good chance you already do it for them (and if you don't, then there's many people out there who do).
Microsoft have had bird-eye photos on Virtual Earth/Live Maps for a few months now. This isn't your normal satellite images, nor the 3D rendered version , rather an aircraft flies around taking high-res photos which give a better impression of where things are located (i.e.. much easier to visualise and understand). This was blogged about back in May. Google, now nearly 2 months later, buy a company who does this - yet, AFAIK, still haven't rolled out the service. http://virtualearth.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!2BBC66E99FDCDB98!8739.entry
Why wait for someone to actually pickup a phone?
Googles new patent to listen to what's going on in your house -- obstinably to determine what's on the TV or Radio, but it's not like the mic on your 'puter is going to filter everything else out:
http://blogs.zdnet.com/ip-telephony/?p=1721
Sadly, you know there are people oblivious enough to sign up for such things. Or their kids -- without the consent of others in the house.
A few weeks ago, walking home I walked past a car in traffic which had two good-quality (we use them ourselves) video cameras rigged to a frame in the passenger seat which also held a laptop. There were no markings on the car but from the driver's behavoir toward the kit it looked to me like it was running.
Anyone else seen one?
"Well, well.
When will we see the privacy mob up in arms and brandishing the same venomous, acid tongues they use when attacking Government.
Perhaps they are not privacy advocates, as they like to think, but simply anti-Government fanatics."
For quite some years now actually, what rock have you been hiding under? See: http://www.google-watch.org/