Traffic conditions are a Google Maps feature to find out traffic jams. However this feature was turned off in Ukraine due to the Russian invasion.
Reporting from CNN, Wednesday (2/3/2022) Google turned off traffic information on the Google Maps application for the map region of Ukraine. This is due to reports of users using this feature to monitor the movements of soldiers and civilians during the Russian invasion.
Traffic data on Google Maps combines location information from users' smartphones and their mobility speed. This information is processed to determine whether the traffic is congested or not.
However, when Russia attacked Ukraine, this information could also be used to monitor the movement of military convoys. This was revealed by intelligence experts from the Middlebury Institute to Vice.
"We saw in the application (Google Maps) there was unusual traffic going on in the Russian border city of Belgorod," he said.
As soon as Putin announced the invasion, there seemed to be a build-up of traffic in Kharkiv and it extended to the border, and then disappeared. Unknown ship Google disabled the traffic feature in Google Maps for the Ukraine region.
Google declined to comment on their move to turn off the traffic feature. They said they were taking action for the safety of the local Ukrainian community after consulting local authorities.
Experts previously said Google Maps data could potentially be used by Russia to monitor Ukrainian troops and/or vice versa. I hope the war ends soon there.