[LINK] Google Gets Even Nastier

[Bernard Robertson-Dunn]

There's always the possibility of unintended consequences.

Google's actions might turn people off Google and/or allow competitors 
to emerge.

It rather demonstrates my mantra "all solutions create new problems".


On 19/09/2012 9:22 AM, Roger Clarke wrote:
> The threat that Google represents to freedoms and privacy just went
> up another big notch.
>
> The company has been granted a Patent for some bleeding obvious ideas.
>
> That's a problem already, because the US grants massive powers to the
> owners of patent and copyright laws, which enables those companies to
> hamper other companies' innovations.
>
> It's a much bigger problem in this case, because:
> -   Google is seeking to become the dominant manager of identities
> -   under its scheme, all personae are linked to what the company
>       calls "the user's real identity"
> -   the language of the patent debases the notion of an anonym,
>       in that Google would know the 'real identity' behind it
> -   that centralisation of data would provide massive power over
>       individuals, to the company, to its strategic partners, and
>       to the US Government - which would inevitably be a major user
>       of the scheme - and to whichever governments the US regards as
>       its allies at any given time
> -   Google will be able to use the patent to interfere with the
>       efforts of organisations that want to offer alternative identity
>       management schemes that are more freedom-friendly
>
>
> US Patent 8,271,894 of September 18, 2012
> Priority Date September 27, 2011
> Social computing personas for protecting identity in online social interactions
> http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=8,271,894.PN.&OS=PN/8,271,894&RS=PN/8,271,894
>
>
> [Drawn to attention on Lauren Weinstein's list]
>


-- 
  
Regards
brd

Bernard Robertson-Dunn
Canberra Australia
email:   brd at iimetro.com.au
website: www.drbrd.com