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Privacy

Consumer Watchdog investigations and advocacy on data privacy, surveillance, AI, and your right to control your personal information.
Google May Release Robot Car Crash Reports

Google May Release Robot Car Crash Reports

<p>Google founder Sergey Brin said he would be "open" to releasing accident reports about crashes involving its robot cars in response to a Consumer Watchdog challenge for transparency about the crashes today.</p> <p>However, Google executives rejected Consumer Watchdog's call to protect privacy of driverless car users by limiting the use of data gathered by the cars to only operating the vehicles.</p>
Google Founder Defends Accident Records of Self-Driving Cars

Google Founder Defends Accident Records of Self-Driving Cars

<h3 id="dek">Google co-founder cites privacy issues for shielding accident reports of self-driving cars</h3> <p>SAN FRANCISCO -- Google co-founder <a class="r_lapi" href="http://abcnews.go.com/topics/business/people/sergey-brin.htm">Sergey Brin</a> sees little reason to release the accident reports involving the Internet company's self-driving cars because he believes there's nothing new in documents that have been withheld so far to protect the privacy of other motorists.</p>
Google Defends Not Releasing Accident Reports For Self-Driving Cars

Google Defends Not Releasing Accident Reports For Self-Driving Cars

<p>SAN FRANCISCO — Google co-founder Sergey Brin on Wednesday defended his company's policy of not releasing accident reports for its self-driving cars, saying the Internet giant is trying to protect the privacy of the human drivers who caused the collisions.</p> <p>Even if the names were redacted from the records, Brin said, the reports would just confirm a summary posted online three weeks ago.</p> <p>The number of accidents rose to 12 in the past week after a self-driving car was rear-ended, Brin said.</p>
Driverless Cars, Diversity And Dystopia: 3 Things Google Discussed At Its Annual Meeting

Driverless Cars, Diversity And Dystopia: 3 Things Google Discussed At Its Annual Meeting

<p><strong>Google talks about a wide range of topics during its annual meeting with shareholders, including self-driving cars and diversity issues. CEO Larry Page even takes a turn as a film critic.</strong></p> <p style="">It's been a long time since Google was just a search company. The tech giant now has its hand in a little bit of everything, including self-driving cars, tools for people who experience tremors and smart contact lenses.</p>
Larry Page On Future: “Everything’s Getting Better”

Larry Page On Future: “Everything’s Getting Better”

<p>Biodiversity. Workplace diversity. Religion. Wind turbines. Self-driving car crashes. Science fiction. Political lobbying. And yes, even the Internet.</p> <p>Wednesday morning was Google’s annual shareholder meeting, which is also a perennial opportunity for activists and vocal shareholders to pick the brains of some of the most powerful people in Silicon Valley: Google CEO Larry Page, co-founder Sergey Brin and Chairman Eric Schmidt, along with Google’s chief legal and public policy officer, David Drummond.</p>
Google Self-Driving Car Involved Iin Another Crash

Google Self-Driving Car Involved Iin Another Crash

<p><b>Google co-founder Sergey Brin reveals that one its self-driving cars was rear-ended in the past week, taking the total number of accidents to 12</b></p> <div class="cl"> </div> <div class="firstPar"> <p><strong><a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Google</a></strong> has increased the number of accidents its self-driving cars have been involved in, as its co-founder defended the hi-tech programme.</p>
Charter Buyout of Time Warner Bad for Customers Says Santa Monica Consumer Group

Charter Buyout of Time Warner Bad for Customers Says Santa Monica Consumer Group

<p><span class="timesDatelineBlack">May 28, 2015</span> -- Charter Communications’ bid to buy Time Warner Cable for $55.3 billion is a bad deal for customers, said the founder of Santa Monica-based Consumer Watchdog.</p> <p>“Another merger? These mergers only benefit the top CEOs; they never benefit the consumers,” said Harvey Rosenfield, who founded the advocacy group in 1985, in an interview this week with a Los Angeles radio station.</p>
Bill Would Require California Doctors To Check Drug Database

Bill Would Require California Doctors To Check Drug Database

<p><span class="dateline">SACRAMENTO, Calif.</span> -- California doctors would be required to check a statewide database before prescribing narcotics under a bill moving through the state Legislature.</p> <div class="clearfix" id="story-target"> <div id="content-body-16194140-22533030"> <p>Currently it is voluntary to check the state's Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System, known as CURES.</p> <p>The database lets doctors make sure patients are not getting narcotics from multiple physicians and aren't taking harmful combinations of drugs.</p>