Google Desktop - is it harmful on a network?

Marty999

I have installed and run Spiceworks on our network and it has flagged up that two users have Google Desktop installed. Spiceworks warns that this can be harmful to your network security - do you techies agree or disagree?

Browntoa

Take Google Desktop, Mr. Stevens noted. It is a great productivity tool for users to quickly search by topic for the nuggets of information buried in their computer files and information. But companies, he said, are deeply uneasy about the indexing feature that links desktop searches back to Google’s computer servers, and the prospect of their corporate data being indexed by Google.

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/14/enterprise-20-a-computer-security-nightmare/?ref=technology

[Deleted User]

To be honest, if I was responsible for maintaining a network I wouldn't let anyone install anything on their machines. I'd have everything locked down so that they have to come through to you to request anything to be installed so you can remain in control of your network.