Skip to main content

Google May Team With Top U.S. Spy Agency

Google and NSA
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Internet giant Google may be teaming up with the U.S. top spy agency, the National Security Agency (NSA) to investigate the recent cyberattack that targeted Google’s operations in China. The move would not be without some irony: Google’s “don’t be evil” corporate motto and long-established efforts to protect user privacy would seem to be at odds with an agency that may operate the largest electronic and communications surveillance operations on the planet—including warrantless wiretapping under President George W. Bush.

Recommended Videos

According to a report in the Washington Post and elsewhere, the proposed agreement would see the NSA assisting Google in analyzing the so-called “Operation Aurora” attach that targeted its systems in China (along with computer systems of other companies operating in China) with an eye towards securing systems from future attack. The NSA would reportedly not be giving access to search data, user email accounts, or other materials that would compromise the privacy of Google users’ communications; the NSA would also not have access to Google’s proprietary data.

Although most of the NSA’s operations remain classified, the agency is widely believed to engage in mammoth amounts of transactional data mining, including analysis of Internet searches, email exchanges, funds transfers, credit card transactions, in addition to old standbys like telephone records. The ostensible purpose of the NSA is to obtain foreign intelligence related to military operations or U.S. national security.

If a deal gets worked out between Google and the NSA, the focus of the effort would apparently not be on identifying who was responsible for carrying out the recent cyberattacks against Google, but in hardening Google and others against similar attacks. VeriSign’s iDefense Labs has reported that it believes the attack on Google was carried out by “intelligence entities” operating in China, meaning either the Chinese government itself or third parties operating on its behalf.

Geoff Duncan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…
This cybersecurity disaster made Google’s top 10 searches of 2024
The blue screen of death in Windows.

Google recently released its Year in Search 2024, with a wide range of different topics reaching the top 10. Among major events like the Olympics and the U.S. presidential election is one name you may have forgotten about, but will remember for the chaos it caused. I'm talking, of course, about CrowdStrike, the cybersecurity firm founded in 2011 in Austin, Texas — the same one that was (at least partially) responsible for the largest IT outage ever.

So, what did CrowdStrike do exactly to earn its spot on the list? In a nutshell, it's responsible for the faulty code that meddled with core functions on the affected Windows computers. The error displayed messages on users' PCs saying: "Your PC ran into a problem and needs to restart." The result was downed PCs across the country, affecting a wide range of industries, but most notably, airports. From an IT perspective, this was a nightmare scenario.

Read more
Google may finally bring back the Pixelbook, but not how you think
google pixelbook i7 price cut amazon

One of Google’s upcoming big projects could be a high-end laptop slated to be the next rival of the MacBook Pro.

An internal email obtained by Android Headlines detailed that Google has greenlit a project for a device codenamed “Snowy.” The email suggests the device is a laptop with premium specifications similar to the Dell XPS, Microsoft Surface Laptop, the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook, and the brand’s largest competitor, Apple’s MacBook Pro. With the project past the concept phase, it would likely be quickly expanded into a viable product under the Pixel line.

Read more
U.S. government to Google: sell Chrome
Google Chrome browser running on Android Automotive in a car.

Google might have to sell Chrome, despite its ranking as the best browser you can use. After ruling that Google has illegally monopolized the search market, the U.S. Department of Justice is pushing for Google to sell off Chrome to break up its search dominance. Chrome currently represents over 65% of the browser market, far ahead of any competitors.

According to Bloomberg's reporting, officials from the DOJ and several states who have joined the case will recommend to federal judge Amit Mehta that Google sell off Chrome in order to rebalance the scales. Google parent company Alphabet has been involved in the lawsuit since early 2020. In August, Mehta ruled that Google illegally obtained a search monopoly and called for sanctions against the tech giant.

Read more