US police are accusing Google's Waze app of sending notifications indicating when traffic police are within close proximity to the driver and more, the Guardian reports.
In 2013, Google acquired the company, along with its app that combines GPS navigation with a social network, for $966 million. The app offers free real-time traffic guidance and alerts for related issues, such as traffic jams, car accidents, speed traps, traffic cameras, roadworks, potholes, and unsafe conditions.
The complaints against the app were prompted by Sergio Kopelev, a deputy sheriff in Southern California, who believes that the alerts submitted to the user and indicating the locations of police officers are dangerous for the police.
Kopelev said he learned about Waze late last year when his wife started using it.
The executive director of the Fraternal Order of Police, Jim Pasco, also said: "I can think of at least 100 ways that the app could present problems for police officers. There is no control over its use. So if you are a criminal and you want to rob a bank, you can use your Waze."
Julie Mossler, a spokesperson for the company, says that they take security issues very seriously and that Waze is working with the New York Police Department to resolve the problem.
Source: secnews.gr
