Engadget http://www.engadget.com Engadget http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif Engadget http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Google Buzz settlement approved by FTC, yearly privacy audits incoming]]>http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/25/google-buzz-settlement-approved-by-ftc-yearly-privacy-audits-in/http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/25/google-buzz-settlement-approved-by-ftc-yearly-privacy-audits-in/http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/25/google-buzz-settlement-approved-by-ftc-yearly-privacy-audits-in/#comments Mountain View's lawyers can collectively breathe a sigh of relief, as the FTC has accepted an earlier proposal relating to Buzz's numerous privacy violations. The service -- which already settled one suit and is scheduled for rendezvous with the grim reaper -- was singled out by the commission for misleading users by partially opting them in, even after they had explicitly declined to do so. As punishment, Google will be required to field yearly audits from an independent party for the next twenty years (!). Don't mess with the law government, kids.

Google Buzz settlement approved by FTC, yearly privacy audits incoming originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>FTCFTC settlementFtcSettlementgooglegoogle buzzGoogleBuzzminipostprivacyprivacy policyprivacy violationPrivacyPolicyPrivacyViolationsettlementsocial networksocial networkingSocialNetworkSocialNetworkingviolationTue, 25 Oct 2011 07:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Google finally pulls the plug on Buzz amid 'fall sweep']]>http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/14/google-finally-pulls-the-plug-on-buzz-amid-fall-sweep/http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/14/google-finally-pulls-the-plug-on-buzz-amid-fall-sweep/http://www.engadget.com/2011/10/14/google-finally-pulls-the-plug-on-buzz-amid-fall-sweep/#comments Before there was Google+ there was Google Buzz, the company's big effort to stake a claim in the social networking space. That, of course, didn't exactly work out for the search giant, and it even managed to spark some lawsuits and attract the eye of the FTC. Now Google has finally swept it under the rug in a bit of fall cleaning, stating in a blog post today that Google Buzz and the Buzz API will be shut down "in a few weeks," and that it will now focus solely on Google+ instead. Also getting the axe is Jaiku, a social networking service that Google acquired in 2007, as well some of the social features on iGoogle, and the company's Code Search service, which will officially be shut down along with its API on January 15th of next year. And, if that wasn't enough, Google also confirmed that today's the day that the Google Labs site will be shut down (its demise was announced this summer).

Google finally pulls the plug on Buzz amid 'fall sweep' originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 14 Oct 2011 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>buzzcode searchCodeSearchgooglegoogle buzzgoogle labsgoogle plusGoogleBuzzGoogleLabsGooglePlusigooglejaikuFri, 14 Oct 2011 14:45:00 EST<![CDATA[Google to receive regular privacy audits following FTC ruling on Buzz]]>http://www.engadget.com/2011/03/30/google-to-receive-regular-privacy-audits-following-ftc-ruling-on/http://www.engadget.com/2011/03/30/google-to-receive-regular-privacy-audits-following-ftc-ruling-on/http://www.engadget.com/2011/03/30/google-to-receive-regular-privacy-audits-following-ftc-ruling-on/#comments
 Well, it looks like the spectre of Buzz will be looming large over Google for some time to come -- the company has just reached an agreement with the FTC that will see it receive independent privacy audits every two years for the next twenty years following a ruling that found Google violated its own privacy policy with the service. In a blog post today, Google also says that it will now "ask users to give us affirmative consent" before it makes any changes in how it shares their personal information, and it adds that it would like to "apologize again for the mistakes we made with Buzz." As for the FTC, chairman Jon Leibowitz describes the settlement as a "tough" one, and says simply that "when companies make privacy pledges, they need to honor them."

Google to receive regular privacy audits following FTC ruling on Buzz originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Mar 2011 16:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>buzzftcgooglegoogle buzzGoogleBuzzprivacysettlementWed, 30 Mar 2011 16:27:00 EST<![CDATA[Google agrees to pay $8.5 million to make Buzz privacy lawsuits go away]]>http://www.engadget.com/2010/09/04/google-agrees-to-pay-8-5-million-to-make-buzz-privacy-lawsuits/http://www.engadget.com/2010/09/04/google-agrees-to-pay-8-5-million-to-make-buzz-privacy-lawsuits/http://www.engadget.com/2010/09/04/google-agrees-to-pay-8-5-million-to-make-buzz-privacy-lawsuits/#comments Remember back when Google's Buzz social networking app shared user's private information without their consent? Heck, do you remember Buzz at all? Suffice it to say that some unhappy folks sued, and it looks like they're about to accept a hefty settlement in place of their day in court. Though no money's exchanged hands quite yet and a judge has yet to approve, Google's agreed to drop $8.5 million and "disseminate wider public education about the privacy aspects of Google Buzz" as part of a class-action settlement, according to court documents. While there's certainly a chunk of dough potentially being doled out here, we have to imagine individual Gmail users won't be seeing much -- most will go to "organizations focused on Internet privacy policy or privacy education" -- which makes us wonder if $8.5 million isn't a small price to pay to get Buzz back into the national news feeds.

In related (or possibly completely coincidental) news, Google took the opportunity today to revamp its master Privacy Policy. Read all about it at our more coverage link, if you're into that kind of stuff.

Google agrees to pay $8.5 million to make Buzz privacy lawsuits go away originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Sep 2010 16:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Buzzclass-actionclass-action lawsuitclass-action settlementClass-actionLawsuitClass-actionSettlementGooglegoogle and privacyGoogle BuzzGoogleAndPrivacyGoogleBuzzlawsuitlegalprivacysettlementSat, 04 Sep 2010 16:44:00 EST<![CDATA[Google Maps 4.0 with Buzz support now available in Android Market]]>http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/09/google-maps-4-0-with-buzz-support-now-available-in-android-marke/http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/09/google-maps-4-0-with-buzz-support-now-available-in-android-marke/http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/09/google-maps-4-0-with-buzz-support-now-available-in-android-marke/#comments Looks like Android's getting in on the new Google Buzz party in more ways than one today -- in addition to support in the browser, Maps 4.0 is now in the Android Market and it's all Buzz-ed up and ready to go. We've heard from both Droid and G1 owners that it works on their devices, so we're guessing every other Android set out there running 1.6 or higher will work as well -- let us know if you find anything else cool, won't you? Same goes for you S60 and WinMo kids out there.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Google Maps 4.0 with Buzz support now available in Android Market originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>androidandroid marketAndroidMarketbuzzgooglegoogle buzzgoogle mapsgoogle maps 4.0GoogleBuzzGoogleMapsGoogleMaps4.0maps 4.0Maps4.0Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:49:00 EST<![CDATA[Google Buzz takes mobile location services to the next level]]>http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/09/google-buzz-takes-mobile-location-services-to-the-next-level/http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/09/google-buzz-takes-mobile-location-services-to-the-next-level/http://www.engadget.com/2010/02/09/google-buzz-takes-mobile-location-services-to-the-next-level/#comments Google just announced that it's bringing some serious location-based integration to its services, all centered around the new Buzz social networking tool built into Gmail. Google's going to do location better than the usual latitude / longitude coordinates -- it's able to snap those to actual place names and then take context-aware actions depending on where you are. The new location services is integrated into the main mobile Google.com search page and the new buzz.google.com page for the iPhone and Android, and into maps for Android, S60, and Windows Mobile. Buzz is rolling out starting today, and it should hit everyone within "the next few days."

Continue reading Google Buzz takes mobile location services to the next level

Google Buzz takes mobile location services to the next level originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Feb 2010 13:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>androidbreaking newsBreakingNewsbuzzgooglegoogle buzzgoogle mapsGoogleBuzzGoogleMapsiphonelocationlocation-basedlocation-based servicesLocation-basedServicess60windowsTue, 09 Feb 2010 13:48:00 EST