Coronavirus – Did you know that Google gave away your data?

Google is set to publicly track people’s movements throughout the coronavirus pandemic. The tech firm will publish details of the different types of places people are going to on a county-by-county basis in the UK, as well as similar data for 130 other countries.

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BBC reported that the plan is to issue regular updates with the figures referring back to activity from two or three days prior. The company has promised that individuals’ privacy will be preserved.

The readings are based on location data gathered via the Google Maps app or one of the firm’s other mobile services.

In this case, the readings will be broken down to reveal how busy the following types of places are compared to a period earlier in the year before lockdowns were introduced in retail and recreation, grocery and pharmacy, parks, beaches, plazas, bus, subway, and train stations, office buildings, and other places of work or residence. 

Hungary is no exception regarding this movement, reports HVG. According to Google, after the emergency measures were announced, the activity of Hungarians decreased rapidly. 

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Between February 16 and March 29, the number of visitors at cafés, bars, shopping malls, libraries, and cinemas dropped by 66%. The number of passengers on buses, undergrounds, and trams decreased by 50% while customers at grocery stores, pharmacies, and other places went down by 44%. 

The number of people who decided to stay at home and not to leave their residence increased by 10%. 

• Coronavirus
• Coronavirus in Hungary

Source: www.bbc.com, www.hvg.hu