Google to Push Privacy Initiatives in U.S.

This article essentially paints Google in a very favorable position regarding online privacy. The search engine apparently takes privacy extremely seriously, going so far as to embed privacy lawyers right within product teams, to ensure that the issue is taken into consideration at every step of the way. Nicole Wong, Google’s deputy general counsel outlined the three main concerns which the company has focused on: “transparency of privacy policies, security of data and user choice, and control over how data is used”. Google also hosted a meeting which brought several companies together with the intention on drawing a consensus on privacy issues, with the end goal of getting a privacy bill passed in the United States Congress. The fact that Google is legitimately taking privacy as seriously as it appears to be is really refreshing, as Google is responsible for literally millions of people’s personal information, which it uses to customize advertisements accordingly. Google is also supporting the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s work on privacy principles, which for example cite the need for web sites to “provide clear and prominent statements that data is being collected to provide targeted ads”. This is obviously relevant to Google’s activities, and it’s another positive sign that the company is embracing such suggestions.