The Dark Side of Google

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

_______________ Forward Header _______________
Subject:        The Dark Side of Google
Author: Lauren Weinstein <lauren () vortex com>
Date:           14th December 2004 5:36:06 pm

Dave,

As I've stated many times in the past, Google has some great search
services.  We all depend on them.  But merely having a couple of
smiling young founders and a "do no harm" slogan doesn't change the
increasing risks associated with their operations.

Google has created a growing information repository of a sort that
CIA and NSA (and the old KGB) would probably envy and covet in no
uncertain terms -- and Google's data is virtually without outside
oversight or regulation.

It is reported that Google has maintained a record of essentially
every search (including the IP address information, time/date stamps,
etc.) done on their systems, and has developed internal tools
specifically to mine "interesting" tidbits from this vast storehouse.
Even persons who turn off their cookies (which Google uses in
significant profusion) could likely be tracked to all of their
searches with sufficient effort.  For static-IP address users, this
effort could be relatively minimal.

In an age of ever-eroding civil liberties, the value of this data to
governments, litigants, and others on an ongoing and retrospective
basis could be vast indeed.  

The added value to Google of having access to the scanned and OCR'd
versions of millions of books (whether copyrighted or not) most
likely vastly exceeds any immediate or even medium-term advertising
revenue possibilities.  The mere availability of this new mass of
data, even before a single outside search relating to it has been
logged, will be of incredible value to Google in an untold number of
ways once they start crunching on it.  And thanks to the deals
Google is making with libraries, the copyright holders won't see a
dime in return.

Google has become the smiling 800-pound gorilla of the Internet.
They've done this with the help of a somewhat fanatical following
who just can't imagine that someday Google might do (or be
*compelled* to do) something nasty with all that data they have
salted away.

What makes this all the more difficult is that their services are so
good, and that there is no reason to suspect at this point that
Google has evil intentions.  But rosy motives don't provide immunity
from what has repeatedly been revealed to be Google's naive world
view (particularly toward privacy and some would argue copyright
issues) and the ways in which their vast machine could someday
become an instrument of genuine repression despite Google's best
intentions today.

Something to think about, at least.

--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein
lauren () pfir org or lauren () vortex com or lauren () privacyforum org
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800
http://www.pfir.org/lauren
Co-Founder, PFIR - People For Internet Responsibility - http://www.pfir.org
Co-Founder, Fact Squad - http://www.factsquad.org
Co-Founder, URIICA - Union for Representative International Internet
                     Cooperation and Analysis - http://www.uriica.org
Moderator, PRIVACY Forum - http://www.vortex.com
Member, ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Lauren's Blog: http://www.vortex.com/lauren-blog


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