Google target of new federal privacy probe

Hard on the heels of being fined $25,000 for allegedly blocking a federal privacy investigation, Google is enmeshed in a second federal probe into its privacy practices that could soon bring a more painful hit to the search giant's pocketbook.

The Federal Trade Commission is deep into an investigation of Google's actions in bypassing the default privacy settings of Apple's Safari browser for Google users, according to sources familiar with ongoing negotiations between the company and the government. Within the next 30 days, the FTC could order the Mountain View search giant to pay an even larger fine in the Safari case than the penalty the Federal Communications Commission hit Google with, say the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity.