Google Leaves Data Center Servers In The Dark

It sounds like some folks at Google are starting to go a little nuts over security. Apparently, Google is building a new data center in Silicon Valley and is so paranoid about security that it is said to be forcing the geeks working on the servers to work in the dark. As long as folks at Google don't start urinating in jars with Howard Hughes-style levels of paranoia, I guess this is okay.

Wired reports that Google is so fearful of spies getting a glimpse at its hardware that it's handing out lights that workers wear on their heads to work in the dark server racks. Google is leasing the data center space from a company called Equinix, and the reason for the paranoia is at least somewhat founded considering some of Google's biggest competitors use the exact same data centers. Google's competitors could be mere racks away.

According to a guy named Chris Sharp, Google removed all the light bulbs from its data center hardware cages at the Equinix data center and handed out miner helmets with lights for people going into the cages to work. Google considers its data center prowess as part of its advantage and designs its own servers and networking gear. I guess a certain level of paranoia is understandable.

Sharp said, "They had us turn off all overhead lights too, and their guys put on those helmets with lights you see miners wear. Presumably, they were bringing up custom-built gear they didn't want anyone else to see."

[via Wired]