Google, of Alphabet Inc., confirmed that it has temporarily deactivated some services of its Google Maps application in Ukraine that provide live information on the state of traffic and the degree of occupancy of different places.
The company confirmed the measure on Sunday, after consulting with the Ukrainian authorities as the country defends itself from an invasion by the Russian Army.
Google said it had taken the measure of globally disable Google Maps traffic layer and live information about how busy places like shops and restaurants are in Ukraine for the safety of local communities in the country.
Signs of the initial Russian invasion on Google Maps
Recently, Jerry Lewis, an open source intelligence expert and professor at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California, said that Google Maps helped him track a “traffic jam” that was actually a Russian movement toward the border hours before Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the attack.
Although Lewis used the data to witness the invasion of Ukraine in real time, stressed that the data could also put the lives of civilians at risk, as well as that of the Ukrainian military.
“I think that big data companies often do not want to face directly how useful they are. it could be your data,” Lewis told Vice News. “I mean, it’s great when we do it, right? Maybe it would be less cool if the Russians were able to do something along the lines of, you know, detect an offensive by the Ukrainians.”
According to Vice News, experts had already pointed out the possibility that Google data could be exploited by Russian forces, which could theoretically use Maps’ traffic feature to keep an eye on Ukrainian troops and notice when they move.
For its part, Google said traffic information was still available to drivers using its turn-by-turn navigation features in the area.
New measures by big tech companies
Ukraine is facing attacks from Russian forces that invaded the country on Thursday. As missiles fell on Ukrainian cities, almost 400,000 civilians, mainly women and children, have fled to neighboring countries. Russia describes its actions in Ukraine as a “special operation”.
Large technology companies, such as Google, have declared that they are taking new measures to protect the security of users in the region.
Online services and Social networking sites have also been tapped by researchers who are reconstructing activity around the war.
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