Well, that covers most governments for you as well.  Don't be deluded into thinking government isn't a corporation.

I'm with you on that, although my country was never meant to be a democracy.  It was founded as a republic.  Democracy (read mob rule) has taken over.

Been saying for years that Google is evil... this revelation goes further to substantiate that it is... pure EVIL.

And let's not confuse this with government prying and snooping (not that I trust, like or believe government, either)... this is a private corporation that profits from information and makes it its business to know all it can about everyone and everything.... purely for profit. I have not doubt that Google's methods and practices are illegal in many (if not most) countries in the world, nor that it would sell sensitive (illegally gained) information to the highest bidder(s).

Google may say that it does not use personal information, well my question to them is: "Well why bother to collect and store it, then?  As for Google not making personal information/details public... tell that to my former brother-in-law, whose personal details are there for all to see, just by typing his name into the search box.

On a related note, people, keep your curtains drawn and your blinds closed.  I have a 14 y/o great-nephew who's at 'that' age (he hides girlie mags under his mattress, etc), and he told me that he'd seen some "naughty" Google Maps images that somebody had gone to the trouble of collecting and posting on the net.  While some are candid camera-type shots of people picking their noses or scratching their arses, that type of thing, he said that many were of naked women (some men, too), filmed through bedroom windows, etc. Now Google might try to say this is accidental, but there's way too many of these images for that... and again, why store them if they were unintentional, and certainly without consent??  More to the point, why make them available to the public???

Yup, Google is EVIL.

Exactly. If you're dumb enough to have an unsecured network in the first place, then you only have yourself to blame if ANYONE (Google, a neighbor, etc) gets access.

natas2 where are you from?    democracy is over rated in my opinion, all that chatting and debating to get anything done  lol

unsecured networks is a recipe for prying and am suprised ppl still use them. i am not anti google coz they are an american corporation (tho most of these big companies seem to be american) but coz they are hypocrites and money grabbing

i have already written to the CEO of google complaining about their hypocrisy and lack of customer care, did they respond? of course not coz i am just a common customer. now i feel a new letter and video coming on "WiFi Google Spy"    lol

America.

ok cool - now i understand what u meant about yr country being born a republic

Sadly, that is because most people have no idea what they are doing when it comes to home networks.  People need to become more knowledgeable about these things, and I do not know about other countries, but ISP's here in the U.S. should brief there customers about issues like this when they come to hook up there Internet initially. Does not have to be in depth, but they should at least mention the potential hazards and offer to install their wireless securely at the time too (for a fee of course). Just a thought, and good for business too.

of course non of it is really safe in the end, i did a search on google for wifi password key and was suprised how many options ppl provide for cracking wifi security. maybe we cld turn the tables on google and listen in to them at HQ   lol

That's like saying if you park your car in a public place you're asking for it to be stolen.  Simply put, Google has NO right to steal wi-fi information just because people haven't or don't know how to secure their networks.

My neighbours leave out their milk money (home deliveries) once a week.... just because it's there and I know it, is not an invitation for me (or anyone else) to takel it.  That's the trouble with Google, though... it lays claim to everything it sees, knows is there)... and justifies the data theft by saying it is providing a service (with that stolen information). 

Mobsters provide a 'service', too - be it protection, drugs, booze, women - but it don't mean you wanna do business with them.  Google might wear the corporate cloak, though it ain't Zorro underneath the mask, but rather another bandit.  And how does Google keep getting away with it??  Friends in high places, perhaps....maybe a bit of unofficial official snooping in exchange for an official blind eye?

In any event, I've come to learn that you don't trust anybody who constantly says "trust me"... nor anyone who says "don't be evil", cos inevitably they're doing it themselves and don't want the competition.

Precisely. Although the law makes provisions not favorable to someone who is flagrantly lax in his/her security (at least in Israel...leaving one's door wide open at home or car door), I side with starkers. Google knows what's right and what's wrong. In this matter, it took deliberate programming by Google to accomplish reading info from people's home/office networks. Those people had "A reasonable expectation of privacy."

Therefore, while siding with starkers I also say be wise and don't put it to the test: Secure your networks!

Yeah, if Google can get your information easily, just imagine what someone with aspirations of fame and wealth could do to you!