U.S. judge to allow investigators a peek at search-engine data

A California judge says he will order Google Inc. to open some of its internet files to investigators with the U.S. Justice Department. But U.S. District Judge James Ware drew the line at forcing Google to hand over data on specific search requests by individual people.That, the judge ruled, would be an invasion of privacy. The battle between the popular search engine and Washington's investigators has taken on epic precautions in recent months as the two opponents debate one of the biggest controversies in the tech world: How private is the internet?
Washington wanted data on pornographers
The issue started seven months ago when investigators asked Google to provide a list of search requests and website addresses for a study on child pornography.The Justice Department said it was doing a study to show how easy it would be for online pornographers to bypass internet filters that keep certain sites away from children. But Google became suspicious when the investigators asked for specific information on users' finances, social security numbers and sexual preferences. Google dug in its heels and refused to hand over the information. Providing that information would have a "chilling effect" on the internet, Google's lawyer, Albert Gidari, told the Associated Press. The government's request would intrude on its users' privacy and trade secrets.
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2006/03/14/google-060314.html