Rossander’s Security Reader

I’ve said it before and they’ve earned it again. Kudos to Google for creating some really creative applications but what are they thinking? Do they even have a privacy person on their staff?

Google recently announced its Latitude application – a tool that works with your mobile phone to track your friends and family – and to let them track you. It works with any phone that can accommodate Google Maps. When you open the map, Latitude adds a small marker showing your friends’ last known location. If you’ve got a picture for them, it can even show that on the map. When combined with text messaging, you could open the map, see that your best friend is down the block, send a quick message and suggest that you both meet for coffee at the shop that’s right between you. You could check on your kids and make sure they (or at least their phones) are where they’re supposed to be.

In fairness, Latitude does not track your motions in real-time – it merely shows the last “waypoint” where the user was spotted. For most of us, the “waypoint” is going to be the nearest cell phone tower. That could be anywhere from yards to a mile or so away – not a very precise location. Latitude also requires you to explicitly opt in before it will begin broadcasting your location and it has a number of privacy settings – who can see your location. It works on a “buddy” system where you have to explicitly invite someone into your social network before they can participate. Latitude even allows some control over the level of detail it discloses. One option allows your friend to only see the city you’re in.

The privacy concerns that I see are two-fold. First, Google promises that they will honor your privacy requests. And I believe that they will for the requests from the average user or miscellaneous person. I have less confidence about their ability or intent to protect my privacy in the face of a government request. I am extremely uncomfortable with the thought that anyone could so easily monitor my movements. Even at the “waypoint” level, that’s too much about my behaviors that I consider private. I don’t have anything to hide but I don’t think they have any business tracking me at that level of detail.

Second, I see social concerns for those users who are inappropriately pressured to turn on the tracking feature. A battered spouse, for example, could be tracked more easily through this tool and may not feel like she/he can turn off the tracking feature because of fear of retaliation. A teenager may want to preserve his/her privacy but feel too much peer pressure to turn it off. We have enough problems with peer pressure and bullying in society. This tool can make life easier for your friends but it could also make life easier for the bullies you’re trying to avoid.

A third concern that’s hitting the privacy blogs but which doesn’t bother me as much is the advertising potential. Imagine if Google decided to tie your physical location to your browsing history when you use your phone for a search. You could be served up the most personalized ads in history – ads not just for restaurants you like but ones that are right near you. If you distrust ads, this could be highly intrusive. If you like ads, it could make them even better for you. Either way, it’s an order of magnitude more than has ever been possible.

If you think the conveniences outweigh the privacy concerns, go ahead and load Google Latitude onto your phone. Google has an excellent reputation with their applications and I suspect this one will rapidly become popular in urban and college settings. If you have privacy concerns, maybe give this one a pass.