Google has admitted that it failed to delete all “payload data” collected by its Street View vehicles and that it aims to proceed with destroying the remaining data.
The search giant has admitted that despite assurances to the UK’s Information Commission Office it failed to delete all payload data, which may include passwords, emails and pictures collected by its Street View cars as they cruised streets in 2010.
According to The Telegraph, affected countries include Ireland, UK, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland, Austria and Australia.
In a statement this afternoon, Google’s global privacy counsel Peter Fleischer said: “Google has recently confirmed that it still has in its possession a portion of payload data collected by our Street View vehicles. Google apologises for this error. Google would now like to delete the remaining data.”
