Australian Privacy Commissioner downplays Google Wi-Fi data collection

According to the Sydney Morning Herald on 22 June 2010 the Australia Privacy Commission, Karen Curtis, is not nearly as worried as Senator Stephen Conroy would like to believe.

Curtis rejected Senator Conroy's claims that banking transactions were captured, while also noting that Google did not collect personal information transmitted over encrypted Wi-Fi networks.

“Australian banks use secure internet connections and my Office is not aware of any instances where banking information has been collected,” she said.

This is unsurprising, given the nature of SSL/TSL connections that banks and many other organisations use.  In addition, the SMH reported that the data was collected in "0.2 second snatches", so I think it's a reasonable bet that often no data at all was collected other than "internet background noise" in many many cases.

So, once again the facts prove Stephen Conroy wrong. It will be good when he loses his ministry portfolio.