Tag Archives: Google

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Give back with the first-ever donatable Hangout-a-thon on Google+


Posted: 02 Dec 2013 06:00 AM PST

As the holidays approach and our calendars become full, it can be hard to find time to give back to the causes you care about most. Tomorrow, on Giving Tuesday—an annual one-day event that encourages people to make donations to their favorite charities—we’re making it easier for you to connect with a worthy cause through the first-ever “Hangout-a-thon” on Google+.
Starting at 9 a.m. EST tomorrow on the Giving Tuesday Google+ page, you can join nonprofit organizations working to improve clean water access, eliminate bullying, and provide disaster relief in the Philippines. Learn more about their work, ask questions and connect directly to the people they’re helping. Celebrities such as Jennifer Garner, Chris Daughtry and Sophia Bush will stop by to join in on the fun, and you can also donate to the charity of your choice while watching the Hangout.

Here’s a preview of what you can do:

  • Connect with people engaging in relief efforts on the ground in the Philippines through Save the Children and UNICEF
  • Join conversations with the founders of Warby Parker and TOMS about gifts that give back, moderated by our partner Mashable
  • Get inspired during a morning yoga tutorial with the Africa Yoga Project in Kenya
  • Hear how the Malala Fund is working to promote education as a peace-building tool in developing nations
  • Participate in a quick coding lesson from Code.org, Girls Who Code and Code2040 and learn what you can do to support digital literacy

We hope you’ll participate by watching the Hangout-a-thon, donating to a cause you care about and posting about the event with #givingtuesday on Google+. And to keep the giving going throughout the holiday season, download One Today, our Android app that lets you donate to a different nonprofit every day.
Posted by Ramya Raghavan, Head of Politics and Causes for Google+

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Small business and ACA


Hangout with the SBA and Cover Oregon to find out
The third in a series of three Google+ Hangouts brought to you by the SBA and Cover Oregon will discuss what small businesses need to know about Oregon’s Health Care Marketplace, Cover Oregon, and how they will access coverage through the web portal. Cover Oregon will address specific small business needs including:

  • How to request real-time carrier quotes including available plans and rates
  • The process to search for and select a medical plan and dental plan for employees
  • How to set up the open enrollment period for employees
  • The process for e-signature and carrier submission

Have additional questions about how the health care law will impact your business in Oregon? Watch the earlier Hangouts that covered specific topics of the Affordable Care Act like the Marketplace and the Small Business Tax Credit.

The first Hangout described the new Health Care Marketplace in Oregon, Cover Oregon. Through Cover Oregon, employers and individuals will be able to shop for health insurance plans and access financial assistance to help pay for coverage. The second Hangout covered the small business tax credit available under ACA and the eligibility requirements to qualify for it.

Join us September 17, 2013, 12:00 – 12:30 p.m. and learn how Cover Oregon can help you.

Registration is not required for these Hangouts.  Simply click on SBA’s YouTube channel www.youtube.com/sba or Google+ Page www.google.com/+sbagov and tweet your questions using the hashtag #CoverOregon.
~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Google+Hangout and Cover Oregon


officalgoogle

Have questions about how the health care law will impact your business in Oregon? SBA and Cover Oregon are teaming up to bring you a series of Google+ Hangouts that will dive into specific topics of the Affordable Care Act like the Marketplace and the small business tax credit.The second in the series, this Hangout will cover what businesses need to know about the small business tax credit tax credit and eligibility requirements. The first Hangout discussed what businesses need to know about the new Health Care Marketplace in Oregon, Cover Oregon.

Through Cover Oregon, employers and individuals will be able to shop for health insurance plans and access financial assistance to help pay for coverage.

Oregon is among 17 other states and the District of Columbia that have chosen to establish their own State Marketplace.

Join us to learn how Cover Oregon can help you:

Topic: Is my business eligible for the small business tax credits under the ACA and what’s the procedure?

When: August 27, 2013; 10:30-11:00 a.m. PDT

Participants: Meredith Olafson, Senior Policy Advisor at SBA; Marisa O’Brien, Business Marketing Specialist for Cover Oregon; and Mike Roach, Small Business Owner of Paloma Clothing

Moderator: Linda Baker, Editor, Oregon Business Magazine

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Protect our kids! Make default settings private and disable geotagging for 13-17 year olds.


 

Instagram (Facebook): Make default settings PRIVATE and geolocation DISABLED for 13-17 year olds.
                                                By Kristin Geiser, Mary Hofstedt, & Robin Connell P.

 

Protect our kids! Make default settings private and disable geotagging for 13-17 year olds.

Unbelievable. That was my first thought when I clicked on the Instagram site belonging to one of my daughter’s friends and found more than a dozen pictures, some of which included my daughter, that were “public” – meaning that anyone in the world could view them at any time. Not only that, but the images were “geotagged” – associating each photograph with the exact location where it was taken. As a stranger to this site, I found my daughter’s picture, her full name, school name, grade level, and then, with one click on the map icon, I was able to view the exact location of her school, our home, and her primary after school location. All without our knowledge or permission. This absolutely should not be happening – especially not for minors.

Currently, Instagram accounts default to “public,” meaning that all photos are able to be viewed by anyone in the world at any time – and that they will show up in various internet searches (e.g., Google images). Geotagging, or identifying the exact location where a photograph was taken, appears to be optional, but it’s often “clicked” by mistake by young users – or activated unknowingly by young users who upload photos to their Instagram site that already carry geolocation data.

The result is that the public can view the exact location where a child’s photos were taken, usually clustering at the child’s home, school, and primary after school location (e.g., specific soccer field), which means that the child’s daily path or routine is easily identified and mapped. If the child’s account is private and geo tagged, photos are easily captured in a screen shot, then the geo tag follows the picture and is now associated with the image wherever it is pasted/posted (e.g., public accounts). This not only places the user at tremendous risk, but it places the children who are in the images OR even linked to the user at risk also – and they have absolutely no control over this.

Because Instagram’s default setting is public and geo-tagged, most young users end up with public accounts – even when their parents are involved in the creation of the account – but especially when parents are not involved. Most parents I have spoken to were not aware that there was a public/private distinction on Instagram.

Even worse – when a child upgrades his/her operating software (which happens when the child is prompted to upgrade by her smart device), any settings previously set at private or geo-location disabled revert to public and geo-location enabled. In other words, children and parents who are trying to ensure some degree of privacy for their account are not even aware that their settings have changed to public by default with the software upgrade. No notice is sent. The child’s account silently becomes public.

As parents, we are trying to walk alongside our children and their friends as they learn to navigate social media. This takes courage and intention. While we do this, we absolutely expect that those companies shaping the social media landscape would take basic precautions to protect the identity and location of minors.

We respectfully and urgently request that Facebook/Instagram ensure that the default settings are private and NOT geotag/geolocation enabled for users who are 13-17 years old.

~ politics petitions pollution and pop culture

Official Google Blog

1 Comment

officalgoogle

What the …?

Posted: 07 Jun 2013 12:50 PM PDT

Dear Google users—
You may be aware of press reports alleging that Internet companies have joined a secret U.S. government program called PRISM to give the National Security Agency direct access to our servers.  As Google’s CEO and Chief Legal Officer, we wanted you to have the facts.
First, we have not joined any program that would give the U.S. government—or any other government—direct access to our servers.  Indeed, the U.S. government does not have direct access or a “back door” to the information stored in our data centers.  We had not heard of a program called PRISM until yesterday.
Second, we provide user data to governments only in accordance with the law.  Our legal team reviews each and every request, and frequently pushes back when requests are overly broad or don’t follow the correct process.   Press reports that suggest that Google is providing open-ended access to our users’ data are false, period.  Until this week’s reports, we had never heard of the broad type of order that Verizon received—an order that appears to have required them to hand over millions of users’ call records.  We were very surprised to learn that such broad orders exist.  Any suggestion that Google is disclosing information about our users’ Internet activity on such a scale is completely false.
Finally, this episode confirms what we have long believed—there needs to be a more transparent approach.  Google has worked hard, within the confines of the current laws, to be open about the data requests we receive.  We post this information on our Transparency Report whenever possible.  We were the first company to do this.  And, of course, we understand that the U.S. and other governments need to take action to protect their citizens’ safety—including sometimes by using surveillance.  But the level of secrecy around the current legal procedures undermines the freedoms we all cherish.
Posted by Larry Page, CEO and David Drummond, Chief Legal Officer