(Like many thousands of others I use Mozilla — Firefox. Have been more than satisfied with it – always. Its free and is never out-of-date. Recently however, I have discovered that I can’t access Google easily anymore. Have relied on Google as the easiest, fastest and most reliable source of anything I am looking for. So it was annoying. My answer is simply that Google is no longer compatible with the Mozilla platform – or words to that effect. Not really an answer. So I have been wondering. I trust Mozilla – when have they ever done me wrong? Bet it has something to do with the following post. Whadayathink? Jan)
Google ready to step up its snooping
Company will track, combine data from its many websites
By Cecilia Kang THE WASHINGTON POST
Google will soon know far more about who you are and what you do on the Web.
The Web giant announced last week that it plans to follow the activities of users across nearly all its ubiquitous sites, including YouTube, Gmail and its leading search engine.
Google has been collecting some of this information, but for the first time, it is combining data across its websites to stitch together a fuller portrait of users.
- Consumers won’t be able to opt out of the changes, which take effect on March 1. And experts say the policy shift will invite greater scrutiny from federal regulators of the company’s privacy and competitive practices.
The move will help Google better tailor its ads to people’s tastes. If someone watches an NBA clip online and lives in Washington, the company could advertise Washington Wizards tickets in that person’s Gmail account.
Consumers also could benefit, the company said. When someone is searching for the word jaguar, Google would have a better idea of whether the person was interested in the animal or the car. Or it might suggest emailing contacts in New York when it learns you are planning a trip there.
But, consumer advocates say, the new policy might upset people who never expected that their information would be shared across so many websites.
- A user signing up for Gmail, for instance, might never have imagined that the content of his or her messages could affect the experience on seemingly unrelated websites such as You-Tube .
“Google’s new privacy announcement is frustrating and a little frightening,” said Common Sense Media chief executive James Steyer. “Even if the company believes that tracking users across all platforms improves their services, consumers should still have the option to opt out, especially the kids and teens who are avid users of YouTube, Gmail and Google Search.”
Google can collect information about users when they activate an Android mobile phone, sign into their accounts online or enter search terms. It also can store cookies on people’s computers to see which websites they visit, or it can use its popular maps program to estimate their location.
Google’s change in its privacy policies comes as it faces stiff competition for the fickle attention of Web surfers. It recently disappointed investors for the first time in several quarters, failing to meet earnings predictions. Apple, in contrast, reported record earnings last week that blew past even the most-optimistic expectations.
Some analysts said Google’s move is aimed squarely at Apple and Facebook, which have been successful in building unified ecosystems of products that capture people’s attention. Google, in contrast, has adopted a more-scattered approach, but an executive said in interviews that the company wants to create a much more-seamless environment across its offerings .
“If you’re signed in, we may combine information you’ve provided from one service with information from other services,” Alma Whitten, Google’s director of privacy for product and engineering, wrote in a blog post. “In short, we’ll treat you as a single user across all our products, which will mean a simpler, more-intuitive Google experience,” she said.
Google said it will notify its hundreds of millions of users of the change through an email and a message on its websites. The change will apply to all its services except for Google Wallet, the Chrome browser and Google Books.
The company said the change will simplify the company’s privacy policy, a move that regulators encouraged.
Still, some consumer advocates and lawmakers remained skeptical.
“There is no way anyone expected this,” said Jeffrey Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, a privacy-advocacy group. “There is no way a user can comprehend the implication of Google collecting across platforms for information about your health, political opinions and financial concerns.”
- U.S. Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., said: “It is imperative that users will be able to decide whether they want their information shared across the spectrum of Google’s offerings.”
Google has increasingly been a focus of Washington regulators. The company recently settled a privacy complaint by the Federal Trade Commission after it allowed users of its now-defunct social network Google Buzz to see contacts lists from its email program.
- And a previous decision to use its social-network data in search results has been included in a broad FTC investigation, said a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is private.
- Federal officials also are looking at whether Google is running afoul of antitrust rules by using its dominance in online searches to favor its other business lines.
Claudia Farrell, a spokeswoman for the FTC, declined to comment on any interaction between Google and regulators on its new privacy changes.
( Well, in my mind it seems clearer why it is that Firefox says Google is not compatible with it’s current platform. I believe Mozilla is trying to protect my interests, even if I am too naive to understand it. Thank you Mozilla. Jan)
