Internet search services provider Google has reportedly missed the deadline set by the Connecticut Attorney General's Office for turning over data that its Street View cars improperly collected from unsecured Connecticut personal and business wireless computer networks. The attorney general's office is now considering legal action against Google. The internet company failed to meet the December 17 deadline to turn over personal data it inadvertently collected from wireless networks.
Last week, the attorney general, Richard Blumenthal, issued the demand, in cooperation with the Department of Consumer Protection (DCP), in the form of a civil investigative demand - equivalent to a subpoena.
Google had initially claimed that the data was fragmented, but has since acknowledged that entire emails and other information may have been improperly captured. The company has called the improper data collection an accident. The company has allowed Canadian and other regulatory authorities to review similar data, but refused to provide Blumenthal's office access to the same. According to Blumenthal, reviewing this information is vital because Google's story changed - first claiming only fragments were collected, then acknowledging entire emails.
Google has said that it does not believe it broke US law. The matter has, however, been a bigger problem for the company outside the US. While it is facing probes in countries such as France, Germany and South Korea, UK authorities cleared Google of collecting 'meaningful personal details' during the company's Street View wireless data breach, earlier this year.
Earlier last month, Google signed a commitment to improve data handling to ensure breaches like the collection of WiFi payload data by Google Street View vehicles do not occur again. The undertaking commits the company to putting into place improved training measures on security awareness and data protection issues for all employees. The company has also said it will require its engineers to maintain a privacy design document for every new project before it is launched.
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