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Google To Allow Location Service Opt-out

Posted by timothy on from the right-gracious-of-them dept.

TripleP writes "In a kind gesture from Google, they're allowing wireless AP owners to opt out of their location service. You only have to change your SSID to include '_nomap' as a suffix. Is it just me, or should this 'service' be an explicit opt-in?"

16 of 284 comments (clear)

  1. you dont opt in to webcrawling by lemur3 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    you use a special robots.txt file to opt out of websurfing.. why should this be any different?

    1. Re:you dont opt in to webcrawling by DJRumpy · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Not nearly the same situation either. When you put something on the web, you make it accessible to millions/billions of people. Your home AP is accessible to maybe 2 or 3 houses.

      You shouldn't have to 'opt out' of this. It should be opt in.

    2. Re:you dont opt in to webcrawling by justin12345 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      This is a pretty clunky, it's akin to adding _nomap to every url you don't want indexed. Google might want to come up with a more elegant solution.

      At the same time, Google doesn't really need to offer any solution at all. "Is it just me, or should this 'service' be an explicit opt-in?" You are opting in when you decide to start broadcasting radio waves. Complaining about having your wifi recorded is like yelling in a public place and then complaining that people notice.

      Google might offer to ignore a network, but no one else will.

      --
      Cool art gallery, if you're into that sort of thing.
    3. Re:you dont opt in to webcrawling by justin12345 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Yes, but most people don't walk around with scanners in their pocket.

      Yes they do, they're called phones.

      --
      Cool art gallery, if you're into that sort of thing.
  2. Opt-in by C_Kode · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Everything should be opt-in. Never opt-out.

    1. Re:Opt-in by Hermanas · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Is it okay with you if I reply to your comment?

  3. Yes by Errol+backfiring · · Score: 3, Insightful

    It should require an explicit opt-in.

    --
    Nae king! Nae laird! Nae yurrupiean pressedent! We willna be fooled again!
  4. Why do you care? by Manip · · Score: 5, Insightful

    While it is nice of Google to offer this, I don't really understand why people care. The SID was always public information as are the location of the AP. So to then turn around and accuse Google of invade your privacy by recording what essentially you've told your AP to shout from the rooftops seems a little contradictory to me. It isn't like SIDs are personal or in any way linked to you as an individual or even your surfing activity.

    So as I said, nice of Google to do this, but I'd question what anyone who opted out really hopes to accomplish by doing so...

    1. Re:Why do you care? by LubosD · · Score: 3, Insightful

      but you might not want the location broadcast world wide

      Sorry, where can I download the complete database of AP locations? Because as far as I know, the database "read access" works the other way around. Your phone submits a list of APs around you to Google's servers and in turn you get your approximate location. I don't understand what the problem here is.

  5. Re:What about other mapping systems? by Nerdfest · · Score: 4, Insightful

    My guess that they didn't make it nogoogle so that Apple and the other mappers can respect it if they wish. Personally, I think broadcasting your SSID is opting in and this is not required.

  6. Re:If you don't want your SSID to be mappable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    My SSID does consist of my name, so that if my neighbors have a problem with my wi-fi, they know to contact me.

    I'm fine with everyone within wi-fi range knowing my name and where my house is (since they already do). I'm less fine with my name and house being pin-pointed on a map for everyone to see.

  7. Re:Considering the value to society... by Eponymous+Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    You have the right answer. Nobody seems to think about the greater good any more. Large corporations and governments already have access to all of this data. Google is just making it available for regular people in an incredibly useful way. It's perfectly valid to have problems with this, but don't ignore the benefits as well.

  8. Re:reality vs expectation by ciderbrew · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I think people would be shocked that wifi and mobile phones use radio waves. I think they expect it to be "digital". If you said "propagate over distances" you'll have lost them at propagate.

  9. Re:Opt-in is not an option by HarrySquatter · · Score: 4, Insightful

    There's no way to get a sufficient number of opted-in wireless access points.

    Boohoo? Since when is that information owed to Google?

  10. Line your walls with lead by bigtrike · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Prevent your SSID from going outside of your property and you won't have a problem, then.

  11. Why not make it work the way DoNotCall.gov works? by ugen · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Why not allow users to enter their MAC address on something like donottrack.google.com - and remove AP from their database based on the entered information? That would be a proper method, that would work instantly, rather than relying on periodic rescan of your general vicinity. It would also avoid having to reconfigure every computer, wireless printer and other devices on the network, having a ridiculous looking SSID and general douchebaggery.