Google says it takes privacy very seriously after New Zealand's Privacy Commissioner joined counterparts from around the world in expressing concerns to the web giant over its data and privacy protection.
Privacy Commissioner Marie Shroff, along with representatives from Germany, Canada, France, Britain, Ireland, Italy, Israel, Spain and the Netherlands, signed a letter to Google chief executive Eric Schmidt, raising concerns over Google's new application, Google Buzz.
The letter said Google violated the fundamental principle that individuals should be able to control the use of their personal information.
The letter also said Google Street View, which offers panoramic views of streets across the globe, was also launched without "due consideration of privacy and data protection laws and cultural norms".
It made recommendations for enhancing privacy protections and asked Google to explain how it would comply with national privacy laws in the future.
Google New Zealand said today it took privacy very seriously.
"We try very hard to be up front about the data we collect, and how we use it, as well as to build meaningful controls into our products," spokeswoman Annie Baxter said.
"We don't get everything 100 percent right - that is why we acted so quickly on Buzz following the user feedback we received.
"We're in regular contact with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, and we're always willing to discuss their feedback and that of New Zealanders because we take privacy very seriously."
