Volume VIII

Issue : 11: May 27, 2010

• U.S. International Trade Commission to Consider Bar on Importing iPhones, iPads
• Pennsylvania Attorney General Seeks Tweeter Identity Disclosure
• LimeWire Liable for Copyright Infringement
• Is the Deck Stacked Against On-Line Poker Payment Processors?
• Wi-Fi Spying Could Cost Google Millions of Dollars
• Ninth Court of Appeals Rules on Work for Hire clause under the Copyright Act.

Home > Volume VIII > Issue 11: May 27, 2010 > Wi-Fi Spying Could Cost Google Millions of Dollars

Wi-Fi Spying Could Cost Google Millions of Dollars

On May 14, 2010, Google took to its blog to admit that it had unintentionally collected and stored payload data (information sent over the network) from open Wi-Fi networks using its Street View cars. According to Google, the problem was only discovered when it began to re-examine the data it was collecting as a result of an audit by German officials in Hamburg. Despite Google’s apology and resolve to learn from its mistakes surrounding these alleged privacy violations, it faces investigations in Europe and a class action lawsuit in U.S. District Court, District of Oregon.

Vicki Van Valin and Neil Mertz filed the class action lawsuit on May 18, 2010, based on the allegation that Google used its wireless packet sniffers and camera-equipped Street View cars to obtain information from Wi-Fi networks and that this “conduct was an intentional intrusion upon plaintiffs’ and class members’ private affairs or concerns.” Google insists that the collection of payload data was a mistake, resulting from the inclusion of code, which was never intended to be part of the final product. The class action lawsuit seeks: (1) statutory damages (the greater of $100 for each day any person’s privacy was violated, or $10,000 for each violation), (2) punitive damages, (3) attorney fees, and (4) an injunction for the court to prevent the data collected from being destroyed until it can be inspected as part of the lawsuit.

Although Reps. Ed Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, and Joe Barton, a Texas Republican, have sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission urging the FTC to take action, the U.S. government has so far not announced an investigation. However, Google still has to answer to several European authorities about its practices.

For additional information, visit :
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/wifi-data-collection-update.html
http://www.scribd.com/doc/31627486/Van-Valin-v-Google-Complaint
http://news.cnet.com/8301-30686_3-20005515-266.html