Google’s privacy chief confirms existence of ‘censored Chinese search engine’ Project Dragonfly – SCMP
What happened: Keith Enright, Google’s chief privacy officer, confirmed to US lawmakers that the company’s filtered search engine for China exists, but said he did not have details about the scope of the project. The executive made the comments in a Senate hearing on Wednesday, adding that any product the company launches will reflect its values and commitment to its users.
Why it’s important: The company has faced mounting resistance within its ranks since the project was made public last month. Most recently, employees were reportedly requested to delete an internal memo written by an engineer who was asked to work on the project, which included details about how user data will be handled. The search app, which is said to be linked to a users phone number—and, in turn, to their identity due to real-name verification requirements—will exclude search results deemed sensitive by the Chinese government, but will also share search histories with a Chinese partner which would have “universal access” to the the data, details a chief privacy officer should know.