W6 Discussion: Case Study on Google: The Drive to Balance Privacy with Profit

Chapter 10: Google: The Drive to Balance Privacy with Profit: 10-1 Introduction Book Title: Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases Printed By: Kennisha Holloman ([email protected]) © 2019 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning

10-1 Introduction

Google’s ease of use and superior search results have propelled the search engine to its

number one status, ousting the early dominance of competitors such as WebCrawler and

Infoseek. Even later offerings by other large tech companies using comparable algorithms,

such as Bing by Microsoft, have failed to make significant inroads, with Google retaining an

impressive 64 percent global market share. As Google gained popularity, it began

expanding into a number of different ventures, including multiple advertising platforms, a

digital book publishing space, and social networking. It has spent billions to acquire

hundreds of companies in a variety of industries, from robotics to smart home devices to

intangibles such as voice recognition technologies. Approximately 2.3 million searches

every minute are performed through Google’s search engine.

As is common with most large companies, Google has experienced its share of ethical

issues. Its mantra “Don’t Be Evil” was called into question after it allowed the Chinese

government to censor aspects of some of its sites in order to enter the market. Google has

also been investigated and sued by multiple governments based on concerns that its

widespread reach and market power violate antitrust laws.

The hot ethical topic for many Internet users, however, is the company’s approach to

Internet privacy and collection of user information. To improve the effectiveness of its

services, including customized search results, targeted ads, and more precise integration of

its various offerings, Google tracks and leverages user information without explicit

permission (although Google’s privacy statement informs users about the recordkeeping,

and Google does allow users to opt out of some forms of tracking). Such tracking is

common practice for Internet companies, but Google’s deep access to so many different

types of user information has led people to question whether Google violates user privacy.

In light of the increasing amount of cyberattacks and the government’s determination to

crack down on these illegal attacks, consumers also worry their private information, tracked

and stored by Google’s algorithms, might be compromised.

This case analyzes Google’s efforts to be a good corporate citizen and the privacy issues

the company has faced. The analysis starts by providing background on Google, its

technology, and its initiatives. Google’s efforts to be a socially responsible company will be

discussed. We then discuss the criticisms levied against Google, including its initial attempts

to break into the censored Chinese market, its tracking of users, and more recent changes

to its privacy policies. We examine how Google has sometimes clashed with government

authorities. Finally, we review some of the legal methods that have been proposed to

regulate Internet data collection practices and Google’s response to the proposals.

Chapter 10: Google: The Drive to Balance Privacy with Profit: 10-1 Introduction Book Title: Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases Printed By: Kennisha Holloman ([email protected]) © 2019 Cengage Learning, Cengage Learning

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