Google recently trying to convince these users to be more confident in buying its products.
Google CEO sundar Pichai announced a new operating system update
the Android q and a Google i/o developer conference on May 7.
Let's take a look at the video.
Another way we built for everyone is by ensuring that our products are safe and private
and that people have clear meaningful choices around their data.
We strongly believe that privacy and security are for everyone not just a few.
The new operating system will feature improved privacy and security features
and give mobile phone users more control over their personal data.
Google has been facing public backlash on how they've been handling news add user data privacy.
To tell us more about Big Brother and users data privacy
I have tech editor Irene Tham with me in the studio.
Welcome Irene
Irene can you tell us what users can expect from this new update the Android Q.
The Android Q is slated to be released later this year.
It will have a dedicated privacy section where you find a lot of new features.
Users can choose to let apps access their location data only when the apps are in use.
There will also be another console which allows them to block apps from accessing files in external storage.
There'll be new restrictions to prevent apps from launching in the background
and also from accessing hardware devices serial numbers
and also another measure that Google is adopting
is it will not be collecting data from users and sending them to the cloud
to train it's AI model so then the AI model is confined to the phone
just like how Apple does it.
The user's data be locked down on phones and you'll not be sent to the cloud to train AI models.
So a couple of improvements and I think all these comes down to business models
the reason why Apple is able to do this is because it doesn't offer targeted online advertising
which is different from you know Google and Facebook
so that's why the approach have been different in the beginning
and now are we seeing Google and Facebook attending more to user privacy issues privacy issues
We know they are attending to more privacy issues because they been facing the public backlash
on how they've been handling those features.
Why the backlash and what has been happening.
It all started early I mean the intensified scrutiny started early last year
when Facebook reported that it share that as many as eighty seven million of it's users data
with third party firms, third party company consultancy company Cambridge Analytica
and Cambridge Analytica has been using the data
to influence people's votes during the 2016 US presidential elections.
So that's the first instance.
Then early this year
also with the launch of the European GDPR which is the general data protection regulation
The French government has early this year fined Google 50 million euros
for breaching very basic rules such as
not getting consent before collecting users data and
also not being transparent and and clear about how its handling users data so
that's how the fine came about so these are all regulatory pressures
and also users are getting more aware of their privacy and are boycotting
and putting pressure on the big tech companies to do more to protect their personal data
You spoke about Android Q features there's like the incognito mode
and you know not sending data to their cloud for the AI right.
Are these features where else can this tech giants do better
If you look at the requirements of the GDP
It's the gold standard for data privacy protection
which a lot of nations take reference from the GDP model.
There's a requirement that gives the consumers the right to ask for their data to be erased
I don't think any of the tech giant's you know have you know allow consumers to do that
but sooner or later they might have to because that's one ofthe requirements of GDPR.
But I think the regulator is giving them companies time adapt
because if you look at the technology that's in place today I don't think the technology is
advanced enough or maybe it has not been worked into existing systems to allow
data to be erased either in part or in entirety.
So that's one thing that GDP requires.
that's another rule that prohibits the processing of sensitive personal data
such as race, religion, political views and I think tech firms are
some tech firms are you know guilty of that.
They are not allowed to do that without proper justification
And then another rule requires greater transparency over how you know the data share
like who else has access to people's personal data
and what do they use it for.
So greater clarity can be provided and should be provided to address this requirement in rule
which will soon catch up with a lot of companies including big tech companies
So more of the regulators and the public demanding transparency
and also to opt-in in terms of how their data is being shared.
Yes if not now it will be soon yes.
Thank you Irene for sharing a perspective on this matter.
Once again I'm Rachel.
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