Google Reduces Data Retention Policy To 18 Months

Google's Global Privacy Counsel Peter Fleischer appears to be a master of textual undercurrents (what the reader understands as "between the lines"), responding to Privacy International's recent condemnation of the company's privacy policies without mentioning the group itself.

Another palpable and present name never mentioned in Fleischer's accompanying missive to Europe's Article 29 Working Party on privacy and data retention policies is China, but we'll get to that later.

On Monday, Fleischer didn't mention PI at all, but wrote at the
Fleischer announced Google's new policy of anonymizing server logs after 18 months, shortening the previous policy of 18-24 months. Various government pressures, he notes, may require the company to return to the 24-month version.

It's interesting that he chose to publish the company's response to the Working Party rather than PI, especially given the timing. His post was in response to the Working Party's letter asking the company to justify its data retention policies, feeling that the 24-month standard was too long.

Fleischer enumerates the justification this way:

·_{to improve our search algorithms for the benefit of users

·    to defend our systems from malicious access and exploitation attempts

·    to maintain the integrity of our systems by fighting click fraud and web spam

·    to protect our users from threats like spam and phishing

·    to respond to valid legal orders from law enforcement as they investigate and prosecute serious crimes like child exploitation; and

·    to comply with data retention legal obligations.}

That last one, regarding legal obligations, brings to light the struggles Google faces on an international level. In Fleischer's