Google was on the hot seat as online privacy concerns swirled in Washington, D.C., where the Data Privacy Day event was held last Thursday. A group of lawmakers sent Google CEO Larry Page a letter requesting responses to several detailed questions about changes the company made to its privacy policies on January 24.
Google last week announced that starting March 1, more than 60 privacy policies associated with its various platforms and services will be boiled down to one simpler policy. Through the consolidation, cross-platform data tracking that already exists for Google is made more transparent.
“In short, we’ll treat you as a single user across all our products, which will mean a simpler, more intuitive Google experience,” wrote Alma Whitten, director of privacy, product and engineering at Google in the initial post introducing the policy changes.
The changes are intended to make “things simpler and we’re trying to be upfront about it. Period,” wrote Betsy Masiello, Google’s policy manager, in a Google Public Policy Blog post.
Legislators, privacy advocates, and the Federal Trade Commission have suggested that companies like Google simplify their privacy policies for years. In consolidating policies associated with various Google products, it stands to reason the company believed it was satisfying such requests.
Some privacy watchdogs and legislators didn’t see it that way. The announcement spurred outcries including a letter from eight House Members, including Joe Barton, Edward Markey, Jackie Speier, and Cliff Stearns, each of whom have sponsored privacy bills.
The missive asked why Google made the changes, and requested responses to questions about what types of data the company will track and across which platforms, as well as how the data is protected and how it is used.
“While Google suggests that the
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Article source: http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2142417/Google-Responds-to-Privacy-Policy-Backlash-Dont-Log-In