Google 'Street View' Challenged by Canada Privacy Commissioner

Ever get the feeling our world is changing just a little too fast?

This story today from National Post provides a hint as to the cultural and legal dilemmas posed by the amazing technological advances now on our doorstep:

OTTAWA -- Canada's Privacy Commissioner has raised concerns over a new Google program that lets users view and zoom in on street-level photographs that are so clear and precise, they can pinpoint an unknowing bystander and their exact location with the click of a mouse button.

Google's new Street View application uses photographs captured at an earlier date to let computer users navigate through city streets and neighbourhoods in major cities quickly and easily.

But the program, which relies on pictures taken without the knowledge or consent of people in them, seems to violate many basic rights of citizens and poses a serious threat to personal privacy, according to Jennifer Stoddart.

...The program's potential risks have prompted the privacy commissioner to send letters this week to Google -- and the Canadian company that has been providing some of the photographs -- outlining her concerns and seeking an explanation over whether sufficient precautions and safeguards are in place to protect privacy.

"The problem is it's a slippery slope when it comes to privacy rights," said Colin McKay, spokesman for the federal privacy commissioner's office. "You can read house numbers and see street signs. You can clearly see facial characteristics."

Unlike other mapping programs, which use grainy satellite images, the new street-view program allows users to view crisp photographs of pedestrians, homes, businesses and traffic taken from the street level. Many of the photographs are believed to have been taken using high-resolution video cameras mounted on cars as they drive through cities.

Google said it places a high priority on privacy and is not doing anything wrong.

Our bottom line, however, is that the Orwellian 'genie' may already be out of the bottle.

For more on this story, see Canada Feels Violated By Google Street View from Web Pro News.

And while we are still on the privacy front, see Michael Geist on a pending government enquiry as to whether ISP's and cell phone providers should be required turn over their customers' personal records to authorities, in the absence of a Court Order:

Public Safety Canada and Industry Canada have quietly launched a semi-public consultation on one element of lawful access. The new consultation, which concludes on September 25th, asks for comments on the provision of customer name and address information by telecommunications companies to law enforcement...

In the consultation, Public Safety claims that "law enforcement agencies have been experiencing difficulties in consistently obtaining basic CNA information from telecommunications service providers. In the absence of explicit legislation, a variety of practices exists among TSPs with respect to the release of basic customer information, e.g. name, address, telephone number, or their Internet equivalents." After identifying what it considers CNA data (including cell phone identifiers, email addresses, and IP addresses), the departments propose a series of safeguards including limits on who would have access to the information, limited uses of the information, and internal audits on the use of these powers.

- Garry J. Wise, Toronto

Visit our Toronto Law Firm website: www.wiselaw.net

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