Google Latitude: Big Brother or Just TMI?

: Image via Wikipedia

Is it just me or is this whole “information age” thing getting way out of hand? Google Trends is already keeping track of what the world is searching for and we broadcast every little detail of our lives though Twitter (“washing my dog” – hey, that’s great, thanks for sharing!).

At times, I seriously believe we are all heading toward becoming one big Borg collective.

“Resistance is futile. Prepare to be assimilated.”

Now, thanks to Google Latitude, you can tell Google, and the rest of the world, exactly WHERE you are at any given point in time.

Google Cell Phone Tracker

Like current market leader Loopt, Google Latitude will now let you see if you’re near other users and track your location. Google Latitude currently supports Google services like Google Talk and is being rolled out as a part of Google Maps, instead of being a completely self-contained product.

Google Latitude is available now for Android, Windows Mobile, Blackberry and Nokia Symbian phones with additional support for Java-enabled phones and the iPhone coming soon. It truly is a Google Cell Phone Tracker.

As VentureBeat states:

Just imagine being able to look at a Google Map on a wide range of mobile devices, or on your computer and seeing where your friends and loved ones are. If they’re close by, maybe you can make plans with them.

Great. Just what I want. I actually enjoy my privacy (perhaps a bit too much). I surely don’t want “Uncle Fred” knowing my whereabouts at any given time.

On the bright side, if you don’t feel like being tracked, you can justn hide yourself from select “friends,” or manually enter a false location as your current one (now THAT could get interesting).