Google’s relationship with social media has always been troubled. Widely believed to be aimed at attacking Facebook’s dominance in that domain, Google+ never quite lived up to that dream. The social network from the maker of otherwise extremely successful products never took off and instead turned into something of a punching bag for internet enthusiasts. On October, 8th the Wall Street Journal reported that in March Google had found a bug in its code, making user data marked private visible to connection and third parties. This was the final push, the firm needed. Hours after the WSJ-article, Google announced that it was taking down the social network.
The company has no evidence that the bug has been exploited and nobody really shared much on Google+ anyway. Therefore, Google’s response may seem very swift and sweeping. This, self-evidently, has everything to do with the massive trouble Facebook has found itself in with the Cambridge Analytica Scandal. Although the number of affected users – if there even are any – is two orders of magnitude smaller, similarities abound. Both involved accidentally making available private user data to third party apps and Google, too, only took action after the incident was made public. If axing its unpopular social network could limit the damage done to the reputation of an otherwise extremely successful firm, this may have seemed a small price to pay for Google’s executives.
Few tears will be shed about the disappearance of Google+. More worrying from the internet giants’ perspective is the ever larger public outcry that follows their missteps. This combined with the advent of the General Data Protection Regulation the EU enacted in May may demand a significant mindshift from the internet giants. From “move fast and break things” to “restraint and caution” is a big step.
Harro Boven
