To IT Freepers: Serious question: Is there any way that this information could have been collected by Google inadvertently, as Google maintains?
I'm no expert, but the Google CARS had a set of special cameras designed to provide an 'omni-view' while driving along. So where were these views 'stored' ?
Were they being transmitted back to Google ?
If so, then they had to be using some wireless connection. This means that as they moved away from some 'connection', they would establish a new connection. This would be where the connection to unprotected networks came into play.
HOWEVER, if the GOOGLE CAM communication software was to connect and UPLOAD a streaming set of pictures files (along with GPS coords, addresses, whatever), then it DOES NOT EXPLAIN why it would DOWNLOAD personal data from PC's on the 'home' network' it connected to.
IF the data (pictures) are stored on hardware contained in the vehicle, What reason would the vehicle even have wireless equipment scanning for local networking anyway ?
A more interesting question is, IF Google 'inadvertently' captured private data, WHY DID THEY KEEP IT ?
Let’s see ... when you take a picture of your kid with your GPS enabled cell phone, do you accidently record the nearby radio stations’ broadcasts as well? Pretty much the same thing. They had to *plan* to capture (and *RECORD*) Wi-Fi data *and* if any testing was done at all (which you *know* it was) then they would have known that they were capturing password info.
> To IT Freepers: Serious question: Is there any way that this information could have been collected by Google inadvertently, as Google maintains?
No it would have had to be intentional and I bet it was done to capture information on browser activity to determine what the tastes / preferences of the household members were. All they’d have to do is access your internet cache, download it, then analyze it by looking at the websites you vsted. After that just sell your name and address to different marketing strategist companies. Sounds like something Google nerds would cook up to make a profit. Of course they would also try to insert human DNA into a tarantula to make them bigger and more intelligent just for the fun of it not realizing they just created something that might wipe out large swaths of the human race.
Liberals - not good at foresight or seeing consequences.
>> Is there any way that this information could have been collected by Google inadvertently, as Google maintains?
No way, no how. There is nothing about taking street level images that in any way requires or benefits from spotty Wi-Fi along the route.
They operated sophisticated sniffers to consciously search out unprotected wifi (and who knows? Maybe even try quick attacks on protected wifi). And once they found such a connection, you bet your butt they snooped around on whatever computers they found on the home net.
News flash: they ALSO operated other kinds of scanners, to discover (for example) what teevee station you are tuned into. Think NSA: they routinely do this. And it CAN be done, by sensing faint harmonics from your teevee tuner’s IF.
Oh yeah, and audio too. Infrared. ANYTHING they can think of.
Their motto may be “don’t be evil” — but Google is EVIL.
Possibly, but then upon learning this, Google should have corrected it. Google had ample time to correct his, yet did nothing. It then became intentional.