IndustryTurns Out Google Didn’t Actually Delete All Its UK Street View Data

Turns Out Google Didn't Actually Delete All Its UK Street View Data

Google has admitted it has discovered more WiFi data collected by its Street View cars that it has failed to delete. Google's WiFi data collection incidents gave the company a huge privacy black eye in numerous countries around the globe.

street-view-caraGoogle has admitted it has discovered more WiFi data collected by its Street View cars that it has failed to delete. Google’s WiFi data collection incidents gave the company a huge privacy black eye in numerous countries around the globe.

This has led to police investigations and action by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) against the firm, although no fines or legal action has ever been taken.

Google had previously agreed to delete all the data it had gathered in the UK, but in a letter on Friday to the ICO, its global privacy counsel Peter Fleischer admitted yet more information had been found.

“Google has recently confirmed that it still has in its possession a small portion of payload data collected by our Street View vehicles in the UK. Google apologises for this error,” he said.

Fleischer explained that the data had only now been uncovered due to a scan of the disks that had been used to house the information the car had collected.

“In recent months, Google has been reviewing its handling of Street View disks and undertaking a comprehensive manual review of our Street View disk inventory. That review involves the physical inspection and re-scanning of thousands of disks,” he said. “In conducting that review, we have determined that we continue to have payload data from the UK and other countries. We are in the process of notifying the relevant authorities in those countries.”

Fleischer also asked the ICO what it wanted the firm to do with the data, before it took steps to delete it.

The ICO said it was “cause for concern” that the data had not been deleted, despite having been collected prior to 2010.

It said Google had breached its undertaking with the ICO by failing to delete the data, opening itself up for a £500,000 fine.

“Google must supply the data to the ICO immediately, so that we can subject it to forensic analysis before deciding on the necessary course of action,” an ICO spokesperson added. “We are also in touch with other data protection authorities in the EU and elsewhere through the Article 29 Working Party and the GPEN network to coordinate the response to this development.”

Privacy advocates and MPs have been highly critical of the ICO’s handling of the Street View investigation, with the latest revelations likely adding to their outrage.

This article was originally published on V3.

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