A ruling from the information commissioner has cleared Google over the controversial alleged capture of data from unprotected private wireless, or Wi-Fi, networks. The allegations surfaced following the release of Google StreetView, which allows browsers to not only view maps of the UK, but also zoom down to ‘StreetView’ and view photograph images of roads and streets.
The photos were collected by driving a customised vehicle over all major roads in the UK, and during this process it has been speculated that Google collected not only images, but also information from un-protected private wireless networks. Google announced in May that they may have inadvertently collected extracts of personal data during the mapping process, but insists that the data amounted to little more than fragments of information.
The Information Commissioner’s Office said in a statement that after investigation they were satisfied that the data capture had not caused any “individual detriment”, and the data did not amount to any meaningful personal details that could be linked to an individual.
Google is facing legal action over the same issue all over the world, but will no doubt be encouraged by the findings of the ICO in the UK. However, the findings of the ICO have been heavily criticised by privacy campaigners, such a “Big Brother Watch”, who have condemned the statement as a “whitewash”.
