A California politician who condemned Google's plans for a free email service as a "Faustian bargain" that undermines privacy has begun drafting legislation to stop Gmail in its tracks.

The search engine giant announced on April 1 in a light-hearted press release that it was planning to offer users a free email account with an unprecedented amount of storage.

Democratic state senator Liz Figueroa fears the California-based firm's plans to scan customers' emails and insert targeted advertisements is a "misbegotten idea" that "undermines the most fundamental aspect of communication - the expectation of privacy".

"We think it's an absolute invasion of privacy. It's like having a massive billboard in the middle of your home," she told the Reuters news agency.

Senator Figueroa said she decided to act yesterday after she received no reply to a letter of protest she sent to Google on April 4.

She warned in the letter: "I cannot urge you strongly enough to abandon this misbegotten idea. I believe you are embarking on a disaster of enormous proportions, for yourself and for all of your customers."

Google told Reuters it had received the letter and would "take it into consideration as we build the best possible webmail service for our users".

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