Privacy: One of Google’s Seven Deadly Sins?
September 15, 2008
The Register, CNet, and other Web information services were abuzz over Google’s clarification of its data retention policy. The story originated on CNet in an article keyboarded by Chris Soghoian here. The story was titled “Debunking Google’s Log Anonymization Propaganda.” In a real coup, Mr. Soghoian elicited a response from the GOOG that will be a favorite of mine for many years to come. Mr. Soghoian asked Google for clarification, and the GOOG replied:
After nine months, we will change some of the bits in the IP address in the logs; after 18 months we remove the last eight bits in the IP address and change the cookie information. We’re still developing the precise technical methods and approach to this, but we believe these changes will be a significant addition to protecting user privacy…. It is difficult to guarantee complete anonymization, but we believe these changes will make it very unlikely users could be identified…. We hope to be able to add the 9-month anonymization process to our existing 18-month process by early 2009, or even earlier.
The Register picked up the story here. The most interesting comment in the Register’s “Google’s Privacy Reform Is a Hoax.” For me the most interesting point in this article was:
What Google plans on doing means that it will still be able to track its users’ web search histories longer than nine months. And if, as one might be forgiven for suspecting, Google never clears users’ cookie identifiers, then it can track them forever. Without clearing its users’ cookie identifiers, Google’s widely praised, supposed “reform” of its individually identifying data retention practices is meaningless, and no true reform.
I am now making a catalog of Google’s Seven Deadly Sins. Privacy is definitely a candidate or should I consider mendacity? Watch this Web log for my decision and the other six sins. I may need to expand the limit in this Zeta Function. Stay tuned.
Stephen Arnold, September 15, 2008
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2 Responses to “Privacy: One of Google’s Seven Deadly Sins?”
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[…] Google handle IP-Addresses http://arnoldit.com/wordpress/2008/09/15/privacy-one-of-googles-seven-deadly-sins/ (Beyond Search) http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/09/12/googles-anonymizer-not-so-hot/ […]
Why should we be put at the mercy of Google to decide if to forget us when they decide to?
It’s time to reverse the paradigm and put proactive privacy management in the hands of the only person who should have control over my data – and that is Me.
Taking an Icentered point of view that puts the user at the center and defines a new pact of relations with providers, will relieve users from taking a leap of faith in opaque privacy statements like Google’s. Why should Google know who we are in the first place? Shouldn’t it be the other way around?
For more on Being Icentered visit http://www.icentered.org