If you're worried about the street address of your home Wi-Fi hotspot being public, Google has a solution.
The Mountain View, Calif.-based company late today announced a way for the owners of Wi-Fi networks to be removed from Google's crowdsourced geolocation database, which it reworked this summer after CNET drew attention to privacy concerns.
It's simple: all you need to do is append "_nomap" to the name of the Wi-Fi network. So "theharrisons" becomes "theharrisons_nomap".
"As we explored different approaches for opting-out access points from the Google Location Server, we found that a method based on wireless network names provides the right balance of simplicity as well as protection against abuse," Peter Fleischer, Google's global privacy counsel, wrote in a blog post. "Specifically, this approach helps protect against others opting out your access point without your permission."
mhansen
5:04 pm on Nov 15, 2011 (gmt 0)
Shouldn't this crap be opt IN, not opt out?
Now, not only do I need to protect my web browser from being tracked by Google Adware, I also need to go into my home routers and add in a special code to noindex my house?!
Googlecar noindex, nofollow. disallow /all
BS
engine
5:11 pm on Nov 15, 2011 (gmt 0)
I agree, it should be the other way around. Importantly, most people will not know how to opt out. Google #fail
mhansen
5:21 pm on Nov 15, 2011 (gmt 0)
Importantly, most people will not know how to opt out.
I called my Father-Inlaw a few minutes ago. He asked, "You mean Google stored Information about my linksys, and now I need to ask them to remove it? Its in my bleeping house!"
I agree... #fail
Panthro
5:34 pm on Nov 15, 2011 (gmt 0)
Yeah, that's pretty rude.
Swanny007
9:23 pm on Nov 15, 2011 (gmt 0)
Ditto, you guys have written what I'm thinking. Google is so arrogant they think that things should be opt-out whereas common sense says it should be opt-in. Opt-out is BS in this case.
creative craig
10:18 pm on Nov 15, 2011 (gmt 0)
These guys are so far removed from reality I am begining to worry about what goes on at their offices!
...this approach helps protect against others opting out your access point without your permission
No it doesn't, it's a crappy way of saying we screwed up again!