engine - 3:36 pm on Aug 22, 2006 (gmt 0)

Subsequent to this event [webmasterworld.com...]

AOL has fired its chief technology officer and two other employees following the inadvertent release this month of search records of more than 650,000 of the internet company's members, a move AOL itself called a "screw-up" that has stoked a heated debate about internet privacy. Maureen Govern, who became technology chief last September, has left the company and her position has been temporarily taken by John McKinley, her predecessor. The researcher who released the data – that was aimed at academics researching search patterns but was widely copied across the web – and the researcher's supervisor have also been fired, according to people familiar with the matter.

AOL Fires Tech Chief After Data 'Screw-Up' [msnbc.msn.com]