AOL admits to violating users' privacy
America Online has apologized for releasing the search queries of more than 650,000 of its subscribers. The company admitted it breached the privacy of its users. In the data AOL made public on an AOL Web site, users were identified by numbers, not screen names, but the search terms themselves revealed enough information to identify some users personally. A little sleuthing could reveal sensitive information about users, including where they live, medical conditions, social security numbers, and more.
Future Tense news analyst Dwight Silverman says AOL's mistake is a doozy.