I've been working with Wisconsin legislators on a bill to require the cell providers to purge the history unless you've opted in to a service requiring retention, and requiring warrants for realtime tracking by Law enforcement, due for introduction soon.

The Earth Store is the company selling the TrackStick. They are obviously and deliberately trying to confuse consumers into thinking that they are affiliated with Google. But if you look closely, you'll see that the only Google logo on their site is the one for "Google Checkout," which is a merchant payment system that Google offers as a service to websites. They also note that they have licensed their use of the name Google Earth if you read the fine print.

Also, this device passively records GPS information to its on-board memory. While the device isn't huge, it does require a 5-20V power supply (a cigarette lighter is the example they give). And, as expertlaw pointed out in the comments, in order to retrieve the data from the unit, you actually have to obtain the unit and connect it via a USB cable to a computer and download the data.

The Earth Store sells the TrackStick, which "integrates" with Google Earth. However, Google publishes an open format called KML, which means that anybody can "integrate" with Google Earth, without Google's permission or consent.

Finally, if you've ever used a hand-held GPS receiver, you know that lots of things can interfere with getting a clean signal, including the obstruction of an automobile's or building's roof.

None of this is meant to minimize the serious privacy threat represented by the possibility that you could have this device introduced to your car or possessions without your consent.

However, it's important to understand the technology: it doesn't work if its view of satellites is obstructed by a solid object; it requires a continuous power supply, rendering it larger and/or more obvious than it appears in the web site photos; and, critically, the device must be physically retrieved and connected to a computer in order for the recorded tracking data to be accessed.

Finally, Google Earth is not in any way affiliated with or endorsing this product. If you're going to hate Google, hate them for storing and indexing everything you've ever posted to the Web, or for taking street-level photographs of your neighborhood, or for taking down content from YouTube in response to DMCA notices.

But don't hate them for the TrackStick, because they don't make it, they don't sell it, and they don't endorse it. They don't even link to it from the Google Earth web site.

# Employee and vehicle monitoring
# Law Enforcement
# Homeland Security

Christ, if I didn't know any better, I'd think Google had signed on with Communist China.

This gadget actually looks pretty nice.  I'm thinking I might take it on hikes and use the data to tie my photographs to a map of my route, and to get a more accurate estimate of my speed than I can get with a pedometer.

this technology has been around for some time, it isn't new. what is new is it's ready availability at the retail level.

make no mistake, the next generation will have a built-in, rechargeable power supply, obviating the need for bulky batteries, or connection to the vehicle's power source. further, it will be wireless downloadable to your pc, eliminating the necessity of physically retrieving it.

These private home shelters are sometimes the only safe havens for these women, especially in rural and semi-rural areas.  Usually, we place women into a home across in a different town or county from the one where the woman usually lives.  

I can easily imagine most of those safe homes disappearing if an abuser had the ability to track down his prey.