DNS - Ten Countries Send Letter to Google: 'Set an Example' with Regard to Privacy

Government officials from 10 countries have jointly sent a letter to Google (News - Alert) executives urging the search giant to be more respectful of peoples' privacy when launching new services.

The letter sent Monday to Google CEO Eric Schmidt (News - Alert) references previously-addressed privacy concerns related to Google Maps Street View -- which lets Google Maps users get up-close, street-level views of buildings and other landmarks along major roads and highways in urban areas -- and Buzz, Google's social networking service that was sharply criticized for automatically creating public circles of friends for users based on their most frequent e-mail contacts.

With regard to Buzz, privacy and data-protection officials from the 10 countries said they are still 'extremely concerned about how a product with such significant privacy issues was launched in the first place."

And with regard to Google Maps Street View, 'In that instance, you addressed privacy concerns related to such matters as the retention of un-blurred facial images only after the fact, and there is continued concern about the adequacy of the information you provide before the images are captured,' officials said.

The letter was signed by officials from Canada, Germany, France, Ireland, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain and the United Kingdom.

'We recognize that Google is not the only online company with a history of introducing services without due regard for the privacy of its users,' the letter says. 'As a leader in the online world, we hope that your company will set an example for others to follow.'

As per an AP report, Google officials replied saying the company has 'discussed all these issues publicly many times before and have nothing to add to today's letter.'

'Of course we do not get everything 100 percent right -- that is why we acted so quickly on Buzz following the user feedback we received,' the company said in a statement, adding that it tries very hard to be up front about what data it collects and how it is used.