JEFFERSON CITY — State Sen. Brian Munzlinger, R-Williamstown, has called on Google to remove the Gun Geo Marker app from its Google Play online store. The app invites users to expose and identify the home addresses of gun owners. The app is not available on the Apple iPhone. The app was released July 7, 2013, and has created controversy nationwide regarding privacy and Second Amendment rights. Senator Munzlinger made the request during a meeting with a representative from Google at his Jefferson City office.

“Regardless of your position on gun rights or the Second Amendment, this app is a classic example of how our privacy rights are eroding,” Sen. Munzlinger said. ”This clever attack on our Second Amendment rights is dangerous and could be a violation of our civil rights as well. Any attempt to use technology to randomly identify people whom you may disagree with politically is perilous and extreme. Technology like this could very easily be used by users to profile Americans by race, political views and numerous other categories.”

Senator Munzlinger thanked the Google representative for meeting with him, listening to his concerns and for advancing his request to the Google Policy Team Director.

“I have been told that the Policy Team Director is out of the country for a few weeks and that no action will be taken for many weeks,” Sen. Munzlinger said. “I hope you will reach out to Google and express your concerns about this violation of privacy and they will feel moved to resolve this issue.”

This address may be used to reach the Google store customer service: https://www.googlestore.com/shop.axd/Contact.

Senator Munzlinger has represented Northeast Missouri in the Missouri General Assembly since 2003. He served eight years in the Missouri House of Representatives before his election to the Missouri Senate in 2010. He is a farmer and is an NRA Life Member.