Gov't post-9/11 rush to hide data abates

The efforts at times have tried to defy the Internet-age reality that once something is public, it's near impossible to make it private again.

_ Afterwards 9/11, one concern was the nation's network of underground pipelines, which if broken can fuel raging propane or natural gas fires. Although some utilities kept their own maps public for a during, access to the National Pipeline Mapping System was almost suddenly restricted, and remains so today.

"We have in place robust processes and research to respond to requests by governments or other third parties about particular imagery of concern," Bing said in a written statement provided by its outside public relations firm.