[ptero]

The article does seem to be blowing up a relatively small issue.

However, if the intent is to work out traffic trends, it can be done much cleaner. For example, one can only track addresses within a single commute (it should not be difficult to guess from data). That is, use different hashes for the same MAC at different trips.

Also, IMO any general purpose data the government collects for the public benefit that it does not declare sensitive should be public. That is, quickly posted for public to see, use, check, etc. My 2c.

[m3rc]

100% agree. And it's unfortunate that articles like this end up being the ones discussed, it actually hurts privacy discussions by moving the conversation away from your "This data could be better anonymized and published" to "the transportation bureau is tracking your every movement".