14 DAY TRIAL // State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli held a conference yesterday to discuss the matter of the Internet mapping tools that are showing way too many details from every corner of the world. Although this problem was raised in the past by several authorities, it seems that the officials are now intending to take attitude and resolve the issue of Google Maps and Earth, Microsoft's Map solutions and other products. According to the New York Times, Mr. DiNapoli said that Google Earth is compromising the nation's counter terrorism efforts.
Back in May, it was reported that the Google Maps recently-released function Street View helped terrorists organize attacks at the JFK International Airport. Although the attempts were discovered by the authorities and stopped before they took place, the officials were worried about the amount of information shown by the search giant's solutions.
"In light of the use of Google Earth in the J.F.K. plot, we must ensure these programs are not used as blueprints for an attack on our country. We should not wait for disaster to strike before taking common sense steps to avoid facilitating an attack," assemblyman Michael N. Gianaris, a Queens Democrat, said for the New York Times.
However, it seems that the authorities are trying to censor several sensitive locations from the country in order to prevent potential malicious attempts tried by the terrorists or by other dangerous people.
"The public needs assurances that the tax-funded security improvements we've made throughout the city and the state are not being compromised by information technology available on the Internet," Mr. DiNapoli said in a statement according to the same source.
Some time ago, it was reported that Google Earth was used by the terrorists to organize attacks against the UK troops located in Basra. Because it was extremely dangerous, the parent company decided to replace the pictures with older ones captured before the departure of the army in the area.