Today the UK ordered Google to change its Privacy Policies in that region. Apparently someone has taken exception to the policy and now it must change. Fine, its always fascinating to see other countries and regions look at their citizens’ rights especially when it comes to personal rights.
We take it for granted here, and assume that while we live pretty open lives that no one will stop us from doing this or that especially when we are not breaking the law. We expect that our medical records will not be shared to the world, although we kind of expect that between insurance companies, still there are expectations. Some of these though start to blend or blur depending on your viewpoint when it comes to places like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIN where we tend to share too much. Or places like Google who as I like to tell my clases has one mission “to index anything and everything on the Net”.
Google today owns many places we share information or data (the data is what tuns into information) so there is much crunching going on any one day. We do this sharing via photos, checkins, plotting driving courses. Would almost make for a great action sitcom adventure thriller movie kind of thing. Oh wait, I think they’ve made a few of those. The point being is that we have lots of capabilities now. Google Glass is coming under fire for what really is pretty cool tech.
I recall recording my Architecture 100 class, with Dr, Donald Hinshaw (Top 10 classes I has at ASU). He encourage the Tape Recorders. He played slides the whole class, it was always a full class (300+). He talked about what was on the screen, adn you learned a lot. Then went back to the dorm and toke notes from the tape, then tried your best to pass the 50+ questions for the midterms. But some instructors didn’t want to be taped, even today…go ask a prof if you can record. Being on the record can be tough.
The article goes more into the details that the UK has concern about. From what I know about the law the level of expected privacy applies to some places, less and less as we are surrounded by Smart Phones that can take video and post it to YouTube as you press the “stop record” button. Guess the adage of “behave” when you are in public was told to us by our mothers applies now more than ever. And if you are not suppose to be somewhere, or with someone….might want to still stay away from the Jumbotrom at mid court or in centerfield.
