San Francisco, Feb 28, (dpa/GNA) – US tech company, Alphabet, has switched off real-time traffic information services for Ukraine in its Google Maps navigation software, as Russia continued its invasion of the country.
The company said it had taken the measure in consultation with the Ukrainian authorities, and in doing so, intended to protect the population.
Google collects location data using smartphones that have the Android operating system and uses it to identify traffic jams or other major traffic flow issues.
In Ukraine, however, this enabled the real-time tracking of whether civilians were stuck in traffic jams at roadblocks, at a time when people are fleeing the onslaught of Russian troops.
Shutting down the display of traffic flows is part of a package of measures Google launched last week. “Our incident response team is actively monitoring the war in Ukraine and working around the clock, focusing on the safety and security of our employees, users, and customers,” Google said on Twitter.
Google is also providing technical support to protect Ukrainian websites against cyber attacks.
GNA