The vast majority of Android users should have permanently activated location tracking, which is mainly used by apps such as Google Maps to save movement and places visited. In line with a current story, we are showing you today how this data can also be used for a different purpose: A report shows the multi-level system Google can use to pass this data on to authorities, the judiciary or the police.
Google uses the location data of Android users for many practical purposes: Among other things, you can list each user in the Google Maps location history quite precisely where they have been and when which places they have visited and what means of transport they have used. At the same time, the user can be asked for reviews or photos or asked to answer questions. Of course, this data is only available to the user himself in this form.
The data is used in an anonymous form for Google Maps functions such as Popular Times or Wait Times and is also used in Google web searches and thus provides important information about crowds and waiting times in many places. But the data is also used for traffic information, automated traffic jam detection on the streets or even to determine available parking spaces. Of course, every user can deactivate this data collection, but then they are cut off from such features themselves and no longer contribute to global data quality.
However, such a large database of movement data is also interesting for some external bodies that have been requesting data from Google for years – and according to transparency reports, this is becoming more and more frequent. Three years ago, the New York Times published a very interesting article on how the police authorities query this data. A multi-level system was created for this in the interest of all those involved. Please note, however, that the conditions are in the USA and that it can be different in every country.
Police request information about a region
- Investigators send Google corner coordinates of the crime scene region. This covers the entire area in which all persons present at the specified time could be checked.
Google sends anonymous IDs of all smartphones
- Google sends an anonymous list, “SensorVault,” of all smartphones to investigators. The data are only position dummies but do not allow any conclusions to be drawn about individual users. Note: Google does not have complete movement data, there can sometimes be hours between two location data
Google’s data contains the movement profile of all smartphones
- This data also includes the movement profile so that the entire route before and after the requested time can be read. But even this data consists only of individual points with very different quality. The police select the interesting and relevant devices from this data.
Google releases the available data for individual devices
- The police then send the interesting IDs to Google and in return receive data such as the user’s name or email address. There are no details about the examination process in between and the exact scope of information.
This procedure describes the situation in the USA, but can probably also be transferred to other countries in a similar form. But it does not allow any conclusions to be drawn as to how this information is handled in German-speaking countries. Because the requests have exploded in recent years, Google introduced this system and thus defused things for users. Unfortunately, it is not known how it was handled beforehand. In my opinion, it is a good middle ground to protect the interests of all parties involved.
We learn from this that you should put your smartphone on airplane mode when committing a crime 😉 But the bad boys and girls should have known this for years. But it is much more about finding witnesses who either never came forward or are not even aware that they could provide important information. In terms of fast crime-solving, this huge database is a blessing. Conversely, it can have a relieving effect if the smartphone or the recorded location provides an additional alibi.
On the other hand, there is constant surveillance, which has become too much for many people. Personally, I can understand that very well, but at some point, you have to say, welcome to the modern world. Unfortunately, if you put a smartphone in your pocket, you have to expect to be monitored constantly and everywhere – in whatever way. In the times of Corona, it was again widely known that network operators were passing on people’s location data to the authorities in an anonymous form – so it’s not just Google. However, Google’s data is much more precise.