Google to resume gathering map data in four countries

Google Inc has decided to resume gathering images in four countries for its Street View mapping service. The Internet search company will start driving its cars in Ireland, Norway, South Africa and Sweden from next week, it said on its European Public Policy blog.
The cars will no longer collect wi-fi information, but will continue to collect photos and 3D imagery. Google plans to add more countries in time, it said. In May, Google said the fleet of cars it used to take photos of streets around the world for a three-dimensional mapping service had collected personal information sent by consumers over wireless networks. The information could include email messages and passwords.