Google Demanded T-Mobile, Sprint Not Sell Google Fi Customers' Location Data

> "We have never sold Fi subscribers' location information,"

In other words "we never directly sold the info, but we never contracted them not to do anything with subscribers' location information". In cases like this, I'd say you are responsible for downstream data use. This isn't some API or hole, this is a large b2b contract and Google should have contractually obligated them to what they could do with their subscribers' data and then sued when they found out it wasn't the case. Why didn't they? Either leverage (Google has to rely on someone), ignorance (doubtful), or apathy (we don't care until the media does). I'm inclined to guess #1 and #3.

> a Google spokesperson told Motherboard in a statement late on Thursday.

In other words, we had to ask and get a small statement because being open, upfront, honest, etc is not their approach.

> "[...] as soon as we heard about this practice, we required our network partners to shut it down as soon as possible [...]"

In other words "we have asked, refuse to say whether they agreed, refuse to say when it will happen, and in general are as opaque as those we are deflecting towards".

Obviously the cell carriers are bad actors. But deflecting instead of accepting responsibility is bad too. Just admit you have no leg to stand on because you require them, or show us where, in writing, they promised to do this and when. Can't do that? Yeah, because you're not in control and/or your shitty business practices are all behind closed doors. And I don't limit this to Google, this goes with anyone partnering with these companies (especially the more traditionally reticent ones). Be open or get hate.

Just like they made a big stink about getting everyone to HTTPS. It wasn't to reduce 3rd party incidental access to your browsing data. It was to retain their 3rd party incidental access while icing out ISPs.

https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/1722043?hl=en

"Google Ads location targeting allows your ads to appear in the geographic locations that you choose: countries, areas within a country, a radius around a location, or location groups, which can include places of interest, your business locations, or tiered demographics.

Location targeting helps you focus your advertising on the areas where you'll find the right customers, and restrict it in areas where you won't. This specific type of targeting could help increase your return on investment (ROI) as a result."

In a sense Google is spyware and adware at the same time. It shame these two terms are used less now then they used too, since they lost their meaning when so many apps and your Android phone itself is one.