Google Shares Data on How Virus Has Altered Movement in Cities

Google is releasing new info about the way in which the coronavirus pandemic has cut back on foot traffic to transit centers, retail shops and public parks in more than 130 nations.

The"freedom reports" will be submitted openly online. Unit said in a blog post. Each report will reveal how visitors to particular types of locations, such as parks and transportation hubs, has declined in the previous month. The information will not show individual places or people.

Google arguably has the most precise and granular information about people's location of any organization, private or public. More than a billion people worldwide use the company's Maps app to browse areas they live and traveling to, providing Google real-time insight to the way that folks move around their environments. With Covid-19 infecting more than a million people and murdering tens of thousands, authorities are looking for place information to assist them suppress the disease and apply lockdown orders.

At precisely the same time, privacy advocates argue the crisis provides authorities unprecedented access to private information that may be used to surveil and oppress inhabitants long after the virus is stopped. Google reported the freedom reports do not impinge on privacy because they simply use data from people who have consented to share their location with the company, and the information can not be connected to individual accounts.

"Knowing the overall pattern of how a community moves may play a crucial role in responding to this novel coronavirus and preventing future pandemics," said Sara Cody, health officer and manager for Santa Clara County's public health division. "This information can help us understand how seriously people are taking the shelter in home order and also what additional measures may be needed to slow the spread."