Google's chief privacy officer is out after 13 years at the company. But there's more: Google is also retiring the role as it restructures its compliance teams. Folks on Fishbowl, your thoughts.
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/thomasfoxbrewster_googles-privacy-chief-is-out-and-will-not-activity-7203824359411437568-ixTk?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios
Makes sense, I suppose. There's probably not a lot of money to be made in protecting user data, I can only imagine the CPO would often pose barriers in that sense. And apparently, the head of competition law is gone, too. I don't know how else to interpret those two facts other than Google getting ready for some flagrant violations of the law. Concerning stuff, really...
And I would be inclined to agree with that statement... Yet Google seems to think otherwise. They don't really have the best track record when it comes to this sort of thing, so I'm not all that inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt.
I can’t give detail, but I can say this is unlikely to result in a meaningful negative impact.
Of course not. Google has smart people. One has to assume smart folks are doing this with a plan. It’s a managed departure.
-From a practical perspective there is no plug and play backfill for Keith. There are very few folks who *might* be close no true drop in. So no matter what the role was going to end and a new role would exist.
-from a shareholder ROI perspective, can Google/alphabet justify the same level of investment in privacy that they have had for the last 5 years? Probably not (and almost certainly not after United health, GM and live nation)
That said.. I suspect there will be some iteration of the role in place before he actually departs.
I hate Google. However… From a corporate risk and ROI perspective, what’s the carrot for them to enhance privacy measures? Global and federal legislation has opened the door to nearly unlimited liability from class action plaintiffs, and regulators that require the entity to establish its own standards but sanction for failures anything short of perfection.
If I were google, I’d cut a few near 7 figure salaries (or a bunch of mid 6figs) and buy up as much insurance as I could. Because they’re going to get sued and fined no matter how good of a job they do.