Thousands of US Gov't Websites Sharing Real-Time Data with Google
The US government is apparently sharing sensitive data with Google through government websites—a fact openly admitted by “analytics.usa.gov” (note: unless you are using ad-blocker Google can probably track you once you click the link). The FDA, CDC, Air Force, NIH, USPS, FBI, FCC, and IRS are among the websites/government agencies that are providing data to Google in a way that raises serious concerns. From Reclaim The Net:
“Most of the major US federal government websites and numerous state and local government websites are sending real-time surveillance data back to Google as users browse their websites. Even websites where users are submitting sensitive or personal information, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI’s) tips page and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) website, contain tracking code that sends real-time visitor data back to Google.
Most of these government websites contain tracking code from the web traffic analytics tool Google Analytics. This code collects detailed user data which is sent to Google’s servers, analyzed, and presented to website owners via an online dashboard.”
The analytics.usa.gov website states:
“These data provide a window into how people are interacting with the government online. The data come from a unified Google Analytics account for U.S. federal government agencies known as the Digital Analytics Program. This program helps government agencies understand how people find, access, and use government services online. The program does not track individuals, and anonymizes the IP addresses of visitors.
Not every government website is represented in these data. Currently, the Digital Analytics Program collects web traffic from around 400 executive branch government domains, across about 5,700 total websites, including every cabinet department. We continue to pursue and add more sites frequently; to add your site, email the Digital Analytics Program [emphasis added].”
Oh, it “does not track individuals!” Because we can thoroughly trust Google and the government not to lie to us. After all, this is the government that was making a database of very sensitive personal information from employees filing Covid vaccine religious exemption requests.
This is particularly interesting in light of the fact that former Google CEO (until 2018) and tech billionaire Eric Schmidt recently called for tech companies to get more involved with “national security,” saying, “The tech industry needs to support it.” Schmidt has ties to the defense industry going back years—he was on the Obama administration’s Defense Innovation Board, and he invested millions in defense startup Rebellion Defense (which, despite how new it is, somehow landed positions on Joe Biden’s presidential transition team). Schmidt is also on the boards of other tech companies, including those with an artificial intelligence (AI) or 5G focus, and he chaired the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, founded in 2018. Schmidt has reportedly been very involved with Joe Biden’s White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) through his Schmidt Futures, even paying the salaries of government officials for a certain period. While still Google CEO, Schmidt helped Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign, according to leaked documentation. Schmidt is still seemingly a technical advisor for Google’s parent company Alphabet.
My question is—for how many years has Google been working directly with the US government to the detriment of US citizens? And if it goes back to Schmidt’s time as Google CEO (and it does seem that the Digital Analytics Program has been around since 2016). . .Hillary Clinton’s campaign spied on Donald Trump, including by “min[ing] Internet data,” and Schmidt tried to help Clinton’s campaign. We’re supposed to trust these people and organizations with our data?
From Reclaim The Net again:
“Google Analytics automatically collects data on the pages visited, the time and duration of each visit, and other visitor data (such as the device, browser, operating system, and screen resolution of visitors). It can also be configured to collect data on more specific actions such as when users click or tap specific links, download content, or fill out forms.
Some government websites also have code from other Google services (such as DoubleClick, Google Adsense, Google Maps, Google Play, and YouTube) and other tech giants (such as Facebook, Microsoft, and Twitter) embedded on some of their pages [emphasis added]. . .
This dashboard highlights the most visited government website pages, the most downloaded content from these pages, the locations of visitors to these pages, and other visitor data (such as a breakdown of the devices, browsers, and operating systems that they use).
Some of the many federal government websites that contain Google trackers include:
The White House (whitehouse.gov)
Official guide to government information and services (usa.gov)
Login portal for government services (login.gov)
US Postal Service (USPS) (usps.com)
IRS (irs.gov)
National Security Agency (NSA) (nsa.gov)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (cdc.gov)
National Weather Service (weather.gov)
Social Security (ssa.gov)
Department of Veteran Affairs (va.gov)
National Park Service (nps.gov)
Vaccine search tool (vaccines.gov)
Federal Student Aid (studentaid.gov)
Identity theft reporting (identitytheft.gov)
Government digital services guidance (digital.gov)
Citizenship and Immigration Services (uscis.gov)
FBI (fbi.gov)
Department of State (state.gov)
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) (dhs.gov)
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) (ice.gov)
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) (dea.gov)
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) (atf.gov)
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (hhs.gov)
National Institutes of Health (NIH) (nih.gov)
MedlinePlus (medlineplus.gov)
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) (fcc.gov)
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) (ftc.gov)
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (fda.gov)
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) (fema.gov)
Department of the Treasury (home.treasury.gov)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (nasa.gov)
Official employment site (usajobs.gov)
Courts (uscourts.gov)
US Embassy (usembassy.gov)
Army (army.mil)
Air Force (af.mil)
Cyber Command (cybercom.mil)
[There are] many state and local government websites that contain Google trackers. . .For example, when citizens file their tax returns on the IRS website, Google can see, in real-time, the order that which they visit pages, click or tap links, and download forms. Not only can Google track the entire real-time journey of citizens filing their tax returns but it can also associate this data with their device, browser, operating system, and screen resolution.”
There’s nothing like Big Tech and Big Government colluding to spy on American citizens!