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Get Real Sergey, But Here’s How You Could Actually Help
Sergey Brin, Google’s co-founder, is getting a little bit of ink for his suggestion that all politicians elected today quit their parties and “govern as independents in name and in spirit.”
Continue reading...Pressure Mounts Against Google for Its Anticompetitive Behavior
1. November 2012
Signs that Google will soon face strong antitrust action on both sides of the Atlantic are increasing with a report Thursday from Bloomberg News Service that the the Federal Trade Commission staff has recommended that the Internet giant be sued for unfairly blocking competitors’ access to smartphone-technology patents.
Continue reading...Consumer Watchdog: Google’s Safari-Hack Settlement Not In Public Interest
30. October 2012
Consumer Watchdog challenges that $4 million figure. “The government has not given this court any insight into how it made its calculations,” the organization argues, adding that it needs more evidence from Google in order to determine the extent of profits from the workaround.
Continue reading...Privacy Bill of Rights Would Face Uncertainty Under Romney Presidency, Observers Say
29. October 2012
“I think Romney would let the effort die,” said John Simpson, privacy project director for Consumer Watchdog, a Washington-based public interest group. “He’s an advocate of less regulation on business, so I don’t see much hope that he would be would be concerned about privacy.”
Continue reading...Court Will Reconsider Google’s Safari Privacy Deal
28. October 2012
While the FTC and Google came up with the settlement, it needs to be approved by a judge, which is what next month’s hearing is about. Consumer Watchdog, an advocacy group that has been critical of Google’s privacy measures, will argue that the court should not sign off on the deal.
Continue reading...Google, Facebook Continue Pumping Money Into Lobbying Efforts Setting New Records
23. October 2012
SANTA MONICA, CA — Google and Facebook continued to pump money into their Washington lobbying efforts in the third quarter with the Internet giant spending its second most amount in one quarter while the social networking company spent its most ever for one quarter.
“Google and Facebook would have you believe that they are different from other corporations,” said John M. Simpson, Consumer Watchdog’s Privacy Project director. “They are not. They are following the corrupt corporate tradition in Washington: buying what you want.”
Microsoft Expands Gathering and Use of Data From Web Products
19. October 2012
”What Microsoft is doing is no different from what Google did,” said John M. Simpson, who monitors privacy policy for Consumer Watchdog, a California nonprofit group. ”It allows the combination of data across services in ways a user wouldn’t reasonably expect. Microsoft wants to be able to compile massive digital dossiers about users of its services and monetize them.”
Continue reading...Google, Oracle Of Transparency, Gets Caught By Transparency; Consumer Watchdog Says Earnings Report Glitch Should Be Wake Up Call For Online Privacy
18. October 2012
SANTA MONICA, CA — Consumer Watchdog urged the founders of Google to take today’s early leak of financial information — which caused Google to ask to suspend trading in its stock — as a wake up call for the billionaire executives and prompt them to support giving Google users the right to suspend trading in their own private information.
Continue reading...Google Razzle Dazzles With Data Center Display
17. October 2012
“Putting a data center on Street View is a gimmick,” Consumer Watchdog’s John M. Simpson told TechNewsWorld. “It doesn’t reveal anything meaningful about how Google does business. Google says it wants to organize the world’s information and make it more accessible but, when it comes to its own information and procedures, the company remains a black box.”
Continue reading...Google Privacy Policy Changes Pressed For By EU Board
16. October 2012
John Simpson, of Consumer Watchdog, a group critical of Google, says in a statement that Google acted with “complete disregard” for users’ privacy. “I am glad the European Union is calling out their abuses, but am disappointed that American consumers must look across the Atlantic to see privacy rights defended,” Simpson said.
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7. November 2012