In what one expert on Internet privacy calls "a worst-case scenario," a Massachusetts man was jailed for sending his ex-girlfriend (who had a restraining order against him) an email invitation to join Google+.
But Thomas Gagnon contends he didn't send it; Google did, without his knowledge or consent.
When his ex-girlfriend received the invitation, according to the Salem News, she went to the police, complaining Gagnon had violated the restraining order by sending her the email. Police agreed and arrested him, the News reported. He was jailed then released on $500 bail.
A hearing in the case has been set for Feb. 6. Gagnon's attorney, Neil Hourihan, told the News his client has no idea how the invitation got sent, since Gagnon insists he didn't send it.
Efforts by ABC News to contact Hourihan and Gagnon were not successful.
Attorney Bradley Shear of Bethesda, Md., an internationally recognized expert on Internet privacy, told ABC News it's entirely possible Gagnon is telling the truth -- that he did not intentionally or knowingly send the invitation. "If he didn't send it -- if Google sent it without his permission and he was jailed for it -- Google could be facing major liability," Shear said.
Google did not respond to a request for comment by ABC News.
Google+ allows users to aggregate their email contacts into various groups -- school classmates, say, or professional associates or old flames. Moving a contact from one category to another, Shear explained, can trigger Google to send, automatically, an email to the contact inviting them to join Google+.
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