Google launches social distancing tracking site using location data - Bottom text

New Google site shows where people in a community are taking social distancing seriously — and where they're not

For public health departments, this kind of data could be helpful in alerting them to the next potential COVID-19 hotspot.

www.google.com

Google launches social distancing tracking site using location data

Sundar Pichai, CEO, Google
Denis Balibouse | Reuters
Google
has launched a new website that uses anonymous location data collected from users of Google products and services to show the level of social distancing taking place in various locations.
The COVID-19 Community Mobility Reports
web site
will show population data trends of six categories: Retail and recreation, grocery and pharmacy, parks, transit stations, workplaces, and residential. The data will track changes over the course of several weeks, and as recent as 48-to-72 hours prior, and will initially cover 131 countries as well as individual counties within certain states.
Google says the data will be collected in aggregate, rather than at an individual level, and it won't show absolute numbers of people showing up at parks or grocery stores. The idea instead is to outline percentages, which highlight potential surges in attendance. For example, its first reports states that San Francisco County has seen a 72% drop in retail and recreation, a 55% decline in parks' population, and a 21% increase in residential population between Feb. 16 and March 29.

https://archive.is/Fe2Dr

 

[OfficerBagget]

Gotta make the most of your future airstrikes which will be brought to you by RAID SHADOWLEGENDS THE MOST AMBITIOUS MOBILE GAME CROSSOVER EVER!

 

[JohnDoe]

The data is anoymous, huh? I'm pressing X to doubt our benevolent corporate overlords.

 

[Kaede Akamatsu]

Doesn't matter if it's collected in aggregate or individually, they're still gonna sell it.

 

[Still Anonymous For This]

Google: Only crazy people think we share aggregated data about their location to the public.
Also Google: Check out this aggregated data about people's locations.

 

[MuuMuu Bunnylips]

What's a Google?

 

[CivilianOfTheFandomWars]

What's a Google?

It’s kind of like Ask Jeeves.

 

[MuuMuu Bunnylips]

It’s kind of like Ask Jeeves.

So something I'd never use?

 

[RadicalCentrist]

For example, its first reports states that San Francisco County has seen a 72% drop in retail and recreation, a 55% decline in parks' population, and a 21% increase in residential population between Feb. 16 and March 29.

Ok everything is declining but the population is increasing? Why tf can't these clickbait aggregators at least pass through this shit for readability ugh

 

[Radical Cadre]

I've got a lot of push and pull that make me have to have a cellphone.

But maybe I need to go back to just smashing the thing with a hammer and dropping the remains into a jar of acetone. The house phone still works, after all.

 

[MuuMuu Bunnylips]

Ok everything is declining but the population is increasing? Why tf can't these clickbait aggregators at least pass through this shit for readability ugh

 

[Ineedahero]

What's a Google?

Semper fi to all are long rejected word filters

 

[Twinkletard]

There's not much that separates the ideologies of Google and the CCP.

 

[Quijibo69]

That sounds double plus good.

 

[LubbyChudder]

This is based on Google location history I think

Ok everything is declining but the population is increasing? Why tf can't these clickbait aggregators at least pass through this shit for readability ugh

just means people are staying more at home

 

[Freya]

I've got a lot of push and pull that make me have to have a cellphone.

But maybe I need to go back to just smashing the thing with a hammer and dropping the remains into a jar of acetone. The house phone still works, after all.

just get a $40 flip phone from walmart.

 

[northstar747]

just get a $40 flip phone from walmart.

We ve talked about this in other threads the cell towers can still track you and pinging is part of the spec for 911. Its one thing to have a 3rd party App follow you, but the network its self can track you.

Not to get too nerdy but I doubt Torr is really secure and that the powers that be know alot more with our information systems then they let on.

leave the phone at home

 

[Shugo]

Thanks for keeping me safe Google

I hope you use my payment information to send to the government the moment I break electronically-monitored quarantine. I'm glad the entire USA and wherever else Google operates is on house arrest now. I feel so safe.

 

[AnOminous]

What's a Google?

Something that despite being only 13% of the population. . .

 

[⠠⠠⠅⠑⠋⠋⠁⠇⠎ ⠠⠠⠊⠎ ⠠⠠⠁ ⠠⠠⠋⠁⠛]

In case people somehow haven't gotten this memo, TURN OFF YOUR GOOGLE LOCATION HISTORY AND DELETE ANY EXISTING HISTORY. It isn't everything, but it's a good start.

The data is anoymous, huh? I'm pressing X to doubt our benevolent corporate overlords.

You can click on the link and see what the reports actually show. Unless you kill absolutely every other person living in your country or state, the data produced is effectively anonymized (even if they don't anonymize the location history prior to it being put through whatever processing they use to produce these reports).

The purpose of these reports is for Google to ingratiate themselves to governments by giving them some numbers they can tout to show their measures are working "unneccessary travel is down by 90%! yay for us!"

They're probably up to shady stuff as well, as always, but this ain't it.