Senators criticize Google for not revealing the vulnerability of the data
Senators criticize Google for not revealing the vulnerability of the data
WASHINGTON: Top lawmakers sent a poignant letter to Google on Thursday about the handling of a data vulnerability that affected hundreds of thousands of users of its Google+ social networking service.
The chairman of the Commerce Committee of the Senate, John Thune (R., SD), in a letter delivered on Thursday, joined two presidents of subcommittees when they said they found it "worrying" that Google did not reveal the vulnerability after it discovered.
"At the same time that
"I was learning the important lesson that technology companies should be frank with the public on privacy issues, apparently Google chose to withhold information about a relevant vulnerability out of fear of public scrutiny," the lawmakers wrote.
The letter said that its authors were "especially disappointed" that Google's privacy director testified before the Trade Committee just a few weeks ago "and did not take the opportunity to provide information on this issue that is so relevant to the committee."
The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that Google exposed private data to hundreds of thousands of users of its Google+ social network. The company, a unit of
Alphabet
Inc.,
GOOGL 1.31%
The problem was not revealed earlier this year, in part because of concerns that news of the incident would bring regulatory scrutiny and reputational damage, according to interviews and documents.
Google is closing the consumer version of its Google Plus social network after the WSJ revealed that it had exposed the data of hundreds of thousands of users. Here's how to check if you have an account and what to do about it.
The letter, signed by Senators Jerry Moran (R., Kan.) And Roger Wicker (R., Miss.), In addition to Mr. Thune, added: "Google should be more accessible to the public and legislators if the company is to maintain or regain the confidence of the users of their services. "The letter requests written responses to a series of questions, including whether Google revealed the matter to federal regulators and if it has had a similar incident that has not yet been revealed.
The letter illustrates how Google's problems on Capitol Hill are building up as a result of Google+ revelations. On Wednesday, in a Senate hearing on privacy issues, Senator Thune said it is clearer, from the Google+ incident and the previous Cambridge Analytica scandal at Facebook Inc., that industry self-regulation is no longer enough to protect the privacy of users. , and that a "national standard for road privacy rules" will be needed.
The Federal Trade Commission is investigating an incident in which data was transferred from up to 50 million Facebook users to Cambridge Analytica, a data firm that worked for President Trump during the 2016 campaign.
Google did not respond immediately to a request for comments on Thursday.
As part of its response to the Google+ incident, Google on Monday announced a comprehensive set of data privacy measures that include the permanent closure of all Google+ consumer features. The company also said it is restricting the access it grants to external developers to the user data of smartphones running on its Android operating system and its Gmail service.
"As long as the user data has been affected, we go beyond our legal requirements and apply several criteria focused on our users to determine if they should be notified," a Google spokesperson said at the time.
At Wednesday's hearing, Democrats joined Republicans in their criticism of Google, including the news that they had effectively tried to keep their problems quiet to avoid the same scrutiny that Facebook received.
Senator Richard Blumenthal (D, Conn.) Said he would send a letter to the Federal Trade Commission to urge the Google+ incident to be investigated. "I think this kind of deliberate concealment is absolutely intolerable," he said.
Congress legislation could strengthen data privacy protections for consumers, while delivering much of the work of writing detailed rules to a strengthened FTC. Currently, the FTC lacks much authority to set standards when it comes to the privacy of online data and has a limited ability to impose fines for violations. Congress could also force companies to do more to prevent data breaches.
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SOURCE LINK ERESVIRAL.COM https://www.beviral.online
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