Google Scanning for Your Mac Address?

[dxwarlock]

[citation][nom]mayne92[/nom]All of those can be cracked easily...it was a nice class project ;-)[/citation]

yes...perhaps. but anyone with the know how to do so is going to need googles crappy list of wifi's to make it easier?

it being easily cracked, and google collecting mac addresses are 2 different subjects all together. only thing that relates them is they both deal with wifi.

 

[dxwarlock]

and im sure most of you know..but for those that dont. any webpage you can goto can store your IP address and information if it needs to.
better start grabbing the pitchforks and tinfoil hats because there is 1000's of websites that have logged some part of your internet information. or stop browsing websites or setup a complicated proxy to stop the 'information thieves!"
a car driving by and going "there is a wireless signal in this area" is a problem?

what google is doing is FAR less invasive and passive than that (not that its invasion in itself..its also harmless)

 

[Simple11]

You can't change a mac address unless you get a new Ethernet card. You can't just ipconfig /release /renew lol

 

[TheKurrgan]

The google corporate machine as I now refer to it, has one purpose in life: Make money. This said, the only logical conclusion I can come to is that IF it IS scanning open networks and obtaining MAC addresses and what not, it is using this data to better aim their marketing ploys and advertising database thus increasing their revenue.. Any other information on the persons network is frankly not important to them as they arent out to steal, just make more money via finding out what people like to buy and what not. Mac address sniffing in this case would give them information as to what type of networking hardware they are using, as well as possibly other devices. Eg, on an Open network with 1 linksys router, 2 PC's 3 smartphones they may be able to observe the following:
In City A, this open network was observed operating 2 Dell PC's, 2 iPhones and 1 blackberry. These manufacturers are determined by mac address, as it is fairly common knowledge what manufacturers use what nics in their machines.
This said, they can now determine when done on a wide scale, people in and around city A trend towards what, and aim their advertising and marketing accordingly.
Harmless really -- This is google. This is what they do -- Help people sell you stuff you dont need.

 

[CaptainBib]

China should've just nuked Google.

Personally, I don't like the idea of a corporation storing volumes of information on me and my habits to make a quick buck.

 

[keczapifrytki]

"Every nation should be concerned, especially after Google CEO Eric Schmidt said that Internet users shouldn't worry about privacy unless they have something to hide."

I got something to hide. Something you need not to concern yourself with because it is private. What part of this don't you get? I do not have to be hiding something illegal (as he is implying) to be concerned with this sh*t you are trying to pull.

 

[Guest]

"You can't change a mac address unless you get a new Ethernet card. You can't just ipconfig /release /renew lol"

sorry to burst your bubble yes you can, sigh!
go to advanced properties of your network card and change address,
simples!!!

 

[Manos]

Well i hope Bing gets even more improved cuase im going back to it. Im not from those that will also bend over next time around for that kinda shit. I wont be a part of Google's success. I'll use it if I happen to not find something correctly and easily on Google and thats about it.

 

[annymmo]

[citation][nom]steiner666[/nom]Saved me from having to type it.Still, fuck google. They really are crossing the line. They think that everyone is willing to sacrifice privacy for the sake of a little added convenience that i'm sure only a small % of ppl will every make use of. And we're just supposed to trust that google will NEVER do anything unethical with all the data their collecting on everyone.[/citation]

You should be more worried about somebody else breaking in on google, getting hold over that information.
Google's a company that tries to protect itself.
It gets really dangerous when governments and criminals try to crack down on all that information. Google is already on their radar, the china incident is only the beginning.

 

[JohnnyLucky]

There is no privacy on the Internet.

 

[mindspring]

I smell 'Terminator'

 

[dark_knight33]

[citation]I say if standing in the street of any random area, anything I can see(google street view), or detect (your wireless) is fair game.[/citation]

Except, standing in the street doesn't allow me to, say for example: *Anonymously* See your physical home or your place of business, if you have an open internet connection I can use to get into your network, or any other nefarious purpose I have.

In fact, I bet if I were simply standing on the street with a laptop/netbook in my hands, out in front of your house, you or your neighbors might actually notice me. Google street view often has the effect of removing the barrier of anonymity for residents, and then providing it to people who want to stalk you.

Just think, with Google, I don't even need to leave home any more to see what you drive, I can do it all the click of mouse!

Google is quickly becoming the de-facto "big brother" that the Fed Gov't wishes it could be, and they are doing it globally. They have your emails, your office documents, your home address, a picture of it, possibly a picture of you, your youtube videos, your search habits, etc.

**If you think you are the only one in the world that can search through your information and use it (possibly against you), you have your head in the sand.**

 

[vider]

"Internet users shouldn't worry about privacy unless they have something to hide."

 

[vider]

"Internet users shouldn't worry about privacy unless they have something to hide."

What is that suppose to be? Is he GOD to decide who has to worry and who doesn't? And what if me and my wife we keep pictures of our little kids on our PC's, would then Google send this to the government, based on a "Pedophilia" charge?

No more Google for me! I'm off to Altavista.

 

[Guest]

I wonder if the picture of Dr. Evil is copyrighted too!

 

[soundefx]

It is funny that Google haven't said anything about this. If they were not doing this, wouldn't they have said something by now?

Sneaky, sneaky....

 

[nebun]

people are so paranoid...if you don't want your shit out on the net then put it on an external drive and disconnect it when you don't need it.

 

[antilycus]

don't broadcast your WLAN, problem resolved. Or just clone your mac address after they have driven through you neighborhood. Just find an old NIC card, take teh mac address off of it and throw it away. problem resolved...

 

[timberwolf1128]

Oh no they have my Wirless routers MAC address, the world is coming to an end. I wonder though what people do once IP V6 is finally implimented and for the most part your the last 6 bytes of your ip address and your MAC address will be the same?

 

[dxwarlock]

[citation][nom]dark_knight33[/nom][citation]I say if standing in the street of any random area, anything I can see(google street view), or detect (your wireless) is fair game.[/citation]Except, standing in the street doesn't allow me to, say for example: *Anonymously* See your physical home or your place of business, if you have an open internet connection I can use to get into your network, or any other nefarious purpose I have.In fact, I bet if I were simply standing on the street with a laptop/netbook in my hands, out in front of your house, you or your neighbors might actually notice me. Google street view often has the effect of removing the barrier of anonymity for residents, and then providing it to people who want to stalk you.Just think, with Google, I don't even need to leave home any more to see what you drive, I can do it all the click of mouse!Google is quickly becoming the de-facto "big brother" that the Fed Gov't wishes it could be, and they are doing it globally. They have your emails, your office documents, your home address, a picture of it, possibly a picture of you, your youtube videos, your search habits, etc. **If you think you are the only one in the world that can search through your information and use it (possibly against you), you have your head in the sand.**[/citation]

you dont have to leave your house to find my address, phone number or name either, phone books been around for ages..no one complaining about them. and to find out what I drive..look up public records of the DMV. google isnt doing anything worse that has been done with paper for years..

and my neighbors can look at you all the want, you can even tell them "he has open wifi on his router and im using it" no one can do anything about it, other than complain.

peoples paranoia is reaching all time highs with the "mysterious internet storing all their infos!"