FTC drops Google investigation

jimpeel

jimpeel

Well-Known Member
It seems that if one fetes the president and gives him money that all of one's troubles simply evaporate.

For the story links go to the linked article. I am not going to bother inserting the links in this post.

SOURCE

FTC Drops Investigation of Google Less Than A Week After Company Exec Hosts Obama Fundraiser
by Ken Boehm by Ken Boehm

Yesterday, the White House blog asked “as special interest billionaires continued to pour secret donations of millions of dollars each into front groups supporting Republicans, we asked the obvious question: “What do they expect in return?“” They added, “Congressional Republicans have made clear that lobbyists have a seat at the table even when they are formulating their party’s broader strategy and governing vision.”

People in glass White Houses shouldn’t throw stones.

* “Google’s Marissa Mayer is hosting President Obama for a Democratic party fundraiser tonight. Tickets are $30,000-a-head….” – San Francisco Chronicle, October 21, 2010

* “After analyzing the unencrypted WiFi payload data captured by its Street View cars, Google now admits that the system captured entire e-mails, URLs and even user passwords.” - ZDNet, October 23, 2010

* “The Federal Trade Commission [has] closed its investigation into Google’s collection of consumer data through its Street View cars….” San Francisco Chronicle, October 27, 2010

The FTC decision is a classic DC whitewash, but it a pattern for this administration which has repeatedly given Google “get out of jail free” cards, no-bid contracts and undisclosed lobbying and business access to top administration officials. And when Big Government exposed the administration coordinating privately with Google, what happened?

Nothing.

That isn’t true everywhere.

* The Canadian Privacy Commissioner recently found that Google did indeed capture personal sensitive information as part of its Wi-Spying
* The British Government just re-opened their investigation into Google Wi-Spy over the weekend
* Over 35 States Attorneys General continue to investigate privacy violations related to WiSpy

But in the United States, where a top Google executive hosted a $1.8 million fundraiser in her home for President Obama last week?

Nothing.

Google’s Eric Schmidt recently said, “The average American doesn’t realize how much of the laws are written by lobbyists”. He was clearly speaking from experience.

Congress must hold hearings on this FTC whitewash to put the facts on the table and find the truth.
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People shouldn't be broadcasting that information in the first place. Google just captured what can be obtained by any individual walking or driving down Anystreet, USA.
 
Mirlyn said:
People shouldn't be broadcasting that information in the first place. Google just captured what can be obtained by any individual walking or driving down Anystreet, USA.
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That was the reason my dad chose this location more than 1200ft from the road, partly.
That was more than 30 years ago too.

I like my privacy, although now, even here it's less than it was.
 
Mirlyn said:
People shouldn't be broadcasting that information in the first place. Google just captured what can be obtained by any individual walking or driving down Anystreet, USA.
Click to expand...
Doesn't mean it's the right thing to do.

"do no evil" -- Google
 
ResearchMonkey said:
Doesn't mean it's the right thing to do.

"do no evil" -- Google
Click to expand...

I agree. Are we (or the FTC) levelled with the task of enforcing morals though?

The laws really only apply to private property. If Google drove on company property (read: trespass) and logged company traffic transmitted in the clear, I'd understand. However, this is public property. WiFi traffic is broadcast in a public band--there is no real reasonable expectation for privacy.

Should I drive down the street listening for baby monitors or family FM radios? Should I record what I hear? Now, replace "should" with "is it illegal if."


More to the point: if Google logged the residents data and then sold it, it may land in the FTC's crosshairs.
 
Now if the FCC decides to pursue this by bringing wiretapping charges in wifi world to a federal court, there may a new precedent similar to telephones.

The article just says the FTC dropped their case involving consumer protection.
 
So I guess I can pummel those little google cars with magnetic fields when they pass by house since it's legal and all.

*begins to build large capacitors for an EMP~mashine*
 
As my wife learned years ago on our wireless home phone...

If you are not tethered, don't do anything that you wouldn't want known.
 
It was nothing important. The neighbor across the street had her scanner on & learned where I was (my job). When she brought it up to my wife, the Mrs was astonished to learn that our phone was not secure. She subsequently went around our house & pulled all the wireless phones for trashing. She was pissed.
 
Gonz said:
As my wife learned years ago on our wireless home phone...

If you are not tethered, don't do anything that you wouldn't want known.
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tethered, wireless, make no diff to me.
For years I've operated ANY sound carrying device with the "no expectation of privacy" frame of mind.
 
Your wired phone must be physically tapped, under subpoena. Your wireless is a broadcast instrument subject to FCC rules & open to intercept.
 
ResearchMonkey said:
So I guess I can pummel those little google cars with magnetic fields when they pass by house since it's legal and all.

*begins to build large capacitors for an EMP~mashine*
Click to expand...

129120315143815785.jpg
 
Gonz said:
As my wife learned years ago on our wireless home phone...

If you are not tethered, don't do anything that you wouldn't want known.
Click to expand...

I always warn my customers who are buying baby monitors that what is transmitted can be picked up on wireless headsets, wireless phones. In many cases, baby sleeps in mom and dad's room and the receiver is in the living room, etc. The transmitter is in mom and dad's room so everything mom and dad do or say in that room is being broadcast.

I always tell them to be aware that the neighbors may be listening to what they do in the bedroom.
 
By the by. If you have an older 84 channel UHF television set, the UHF frequencies can pick up cell phone transmissions. Many years ago, the FCC took about 20 channels from the top end of the UHF frequencies for cell phone use. that is why newer TVs do not have frequencies beyond, I believe, channel 54.

It is illegal to monitor any cell phone conversations.
 
Gonz said:
It was nothing important. The neighbor across the street had her scanner on & learned where I was (my job). When she brought it up to my wife, the Mrs was astonished to learn that our phone was not secure. She subsequently went around our house & pulled all the wireless phones for trashing. She was pissed.
Click to expand...

You don't need a scanner. All you need is a pair of wireless headphones. They operate on the same frequencies.
 
jimpeel said:
By the by. If you have an older 84 channel UHF television set, the UHF frequencies can pick up cell phone transmissions. Many years ago, the FCC took about 20 channels from the top end of the UHF frequencies for cell phone use. that is why newer TVs do not have frequencies beyond, I believe, channel 54.

It is illegal to monitor any cell phone conversations.
Click to expand...

I believe its closer to channel 70~80 for older UHF sets, but the newer sets are re-tuned so those channel numbers are not in the same spectrum anymore (also as a result of rebanding). Doesn't really matter though, as a vast majority of cell traffic for the past decade has been digital.
 
Mirlyn said:
cell traffic for the past decade has been digital
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hah I knew I could count on ya Mirlyn

a TV couldn't pick up a cel phone convo in a million years

but explaining code division multiple access or the newer
standards would be an exercise in futility yes like so much else
these days
ojp7wi.jpg
 
jimpeel said:
I always tell them to be aware that the neighbors may be listening to what they do in the bedroom.
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well for most of us, that would be funny more than anything else. the idea of someone listening to me grunt one is pretty hilarious.

though i guess if you got into some wackier shit...

female voice "on all fours!"
man's voice "stick it in my BUTT!!!"
female voice "not until you lick it and get it real wet."
*lots of slapping noises*
 
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