Google updates Privacy Policy ahead of GDPR
San Francisco, May 11: As the European Union (EU) prepares to introduce the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on May 25 to harmonise data privacy laws, Google has updated the company's Privacy Policy to comply with it across all of the services the tech giant provides in the region.
The company laid out a new Privacy Policy in a blog post on Friday detailing exactly how and why Google collects the data that powers its various products.
"We have been working on our compliance efforts for over 18 months and ahead of the new law coming into effect we are updating our current Privacy Policy to make it easier to understand what information we collect and why we collect it," William Malcolm, Director, Privacy Legal EMEA at Google, wrote in the post.
After four years of debate, the GDPR was finally approved by the EU Parliament on April 14, 2016. Organisations that fail to comply with the new regulation may face hefty fines.
"We've explained our practices in more detail and with clearer language and added more detail about the options you have to manage, export and delete data from our services. The policy now also includes explanatory videos and illustrations, because a visual description can be easier to understand than text alone. And we've made it easier to jump to your privacy settings directly from the policy, helping you make choices about your privacy," the executive wrote.
Users would continue to have granular control over the data they share with the company when they use its services, but with clearer explanations.
"My Account", the central hub that brings together all the different ways users could review Google security, privacy and ad settings, has been improved.
With "Activity Controls", users can choose what activity is saved to their Google Account. They could view or delete data, including search history, location history, browsing history from the company's services.
Users can also take a "Security Checkup or Privacy Checkup" to reassure that their account is secure and that their privacy settings work for them.
"Manage or mute the ads you see on Google, on websites and in apps using the recently upgraded 'Ads Settings' tool and 'Mute This Ad control'," Malcolm said.
The users could get a clear overview of all the Google products that they use -- and the data associated with them -- via "Google Dashboard".
Under the new rules, companies must get consent from parents to process their children's data in certain circumstances.
For this Google is rolling out "Family Link" through which parents could create a Google Account for their child and are required to provide consent for certain processing of their child's data.
"Family Link" also allows parents to set certain digital ground rules on their child's Android device like approving or blocking apps, keeping an eye on screen time, or remotely locking their child's device.
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India, Italy to boost defence industrial framework for co-production of military hardware
New Delhi (PTI): India and Italy on Thursday resolved to develop a defence industrial framework for co-production of military hardware, a move that came as both nations navigate an evolving security landscape, including the ongoing crisis in West Asia.
The decision to bolster bilateral defence and strategic ties was reached during talks between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Italian counterpart Guido Crosetto in New Delhi.
Following the meeting, the two sides unveiled a bilateral military cooperation plan (MCP) 2026-27 regarding military engagements between the armed forces of both the countries.
"We discussed a wide range of regional and global issues including the current situation in West Asia," Singh said on social media.
"We also discussed the avenues to further develop mutually beneficial defence industrial cooperation under India's Atmanirbhar Bharat programme and Italy's defence cooperation initiative," he added.
The defence ministry said Singh and Crosetto reiterated that the India-Italy strategic partnership is based on shared values of peace, stability, freedom, and mutual respect.
"Convergence between both the ancient seafaring nations on various key maritime issues was also highlighted including information exchange through Information Fusion Center-Indian Ocean Region, Gurugram," it said.
Prior to the meeting, the Italian defence minister laid a wreath at the National War Memorial, and paid homage to the bravehearts who made the supreme sacrifice in the service of the nation.
Crosetto also inspected the tri-service Guard of Honour.
Under the broader framework of defence ties, both sides have been looking at boosting cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region with an aim to increase interoperability and cooperation.
The two sides have been exploring avenues for enhanced partnerships and dialogue among public and private stakeholders, focusing on technology collaboration, co-production and co-development of defence platforms and equipment.
