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Police Ask Google To Shut Down Waze’s Police-Tracking Feature

CREDIT: AP PHOTO
CREDIT: AP PHOTO

Law enforcement officials want Google to shut down the police-tracking function in the company’s traffic-app Waze because of concern the app could be used to hunt down and harm police officers, the Associated Press reported.

The Israel-based Waze app works as a GPS also lets users interact with one another and report road hazards such as traffic accidents, congestion, weather events, cars on the side of the road, and police activity along their route.

CREDIT: AP Photo
CREDIT: AP Photo

Drivers can warn other Waze users that police cars are visible or hidden but don’t give much information on why they’re there. No incidents have been reported where the Waze app was used to target or harm police officers, but police officers complain that feature is tantamount to stalking, the AP reported.

The function could be “misused by those with criminal intent to endanger police officers and the community,” Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck wrote in a letter to Google’s chief executive in December. Google bought Waze, which has more that 50 million users in 200 countries, in 2013 for $1.1 billion.

The LAPD is still waiting on Google’s response to the matter.

Police safety has become a top concern for law enforcement after two New York Police Officers were randomly killed following controversial grand jury decisions not to convict police officers who killed two unarmed black men, Michael Brown and Eric Garner. The suspect committed suicide after the shooting attacks but, according to the AP, had screenshots of the Waze app on his Instagram account along with general threats against police officers.

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Data shared and collected from social media has given rise to privacy issues and strained the relationship between tech companies, law enforcement and the public.

Police increasingly rely on social media and data collection to help them respond more efficiently to crime. The NYPD announced that it was reigniting its social media monitoring program to help stop lone wolf terrorists in response to a hatchet attack on police in October. During New York protests in response to the grand jury’s verdict for Eric Garner’s death, the NYPD revved up online surveillance with facial recognition software that linked protesters faces to their social media accounts.

Beyond social media, police departments have been using other technology such as smartphone tracking, drones and heat maps to drive down crime.