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SALT LAKE CITY — Google is introducing a new privacy policy that has the potential for identity theft and fraud, according to Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff. He and 35 other attorneys general are now taking a stand.
The policy will take effect March 1, and will allow Google to store more personal information profiles, denying consumers the ability to keep various parts of their online experience separate.
"This is a major change and Google should give consumers the ability to opt out of a policy that could jeopardize their privacy," Shurtleff said in a Wednesday news release. "We believe consumers deserve a full accounting of how this new privacy policy may impact them and [should be] given a meaningful opportunity to avoid it."
This is a major change and Google should give consumers the ability to opt out of a policy that could jeopardize their privacy.
–- Mark Shurtleff, Utah Attorney General
Under the new privacy policy, Google gives itself the freedom to combine users' personal information from services like web history and Youtube with all other Google products.
Shurtleff and the other 35 attorneys general combined their efforts and sent a letter to Google that outlines their concerns about the privacy policy for the public. They fear that the consolidated personal data profiles will be a tantalizing target for hackers and privacy thieves.
In the letter, the attorneys general write: "Those consumers who remain in the Google ecosystem may be making more of their personal information vulnerable to attack from hackers and identity thieves. Our offices litigate cases of identity fraud with regularity and it seems plain to us that Google's privacy policy changes, which suggest your company's intent to create richer personal data profiles, pose the risk of much more damaging cases of identity theft and fraud when that data is compromised, a risk that will grow as instances of computer hacking grow. With this newly consolidated bank of personal data, we foresee potentially more severe problems arising from any data breach."
The new policy will result in less privacy for millions of Google consumers that use an Android- powered smartphone. Android users will have to log in to Google to activate most of the functions on their devices. They will also have to choose between frequently logging in and out of Google's consolidation of their data or replacing their smartphones at a great personal expense.
Currently, 50 percent of the national smartphone market consists of Android devices, so a lot of people may be at risk for less online privacy when the new policy is reinforced.
Given the serious concerns expressed on behalf of the consumers, the attorneys general have requested a meeting with Google CEO Larry Page as soon as possible.
